Role Reversal
by Brilliant Brunette Beauty
Summary: Peeta Mellark is a poor Seam hunter, trying to provide for his mother and sister. Katniss Everdeen is a merchant with a terrible home life. How does fate bring these two together? PLEASE REVIEW
1. A Boy From the Seam

The morning light is peeking through the windows of our broken-down Seam house. I toss and turn on the uncomfortable bed I have to sleep on, when I notice Prim isn't by my side. I look up to see her sharing a bed with Mother. She probably had a nightmare last night. Ever since Dad died, we've both been getting them frequently. I consider staying in bed for a few more minutes... or a few more hours. Only then do I remember that it's Sunday. I have to meet my best friend, Gale, in the woods today.

We met four years ago, when we were both in the woods, desperate for some type of food after our Father's deaths. His dad died in the same mine accident that claimed mine. Ever since then, we've been best friends, hunting together every Sunday until he has to go into the mines next year. As his best friend, I also happen to know that he has a very big crush on the Mayor's daughter, Madge. I should tell him that the townies would burn him alive if they were together, but I'm not much better.

My family and I live in the poorer part of District 12 called the Seam. You wouldn't know it by looking at us though. We all have blonde hair and blue eyes, as opposed to the usual black hair and grey eyes associated with the Seam. But we're accepted by the other Seam residents anyway. What I love about living here is that we're all like a big family, we help each other out.

My family consists of me, my Mother, and my sister, Prim. Mother and I don't get on too well. After Dad died, her mind left. She was still physically there, but mentally, she was gone. I was only eleven, and Prim was only seven. I had to raise Prim as if I was the parent. I hunted illegally, learned how to sew and patch up our clothes, just did anything to make it look like we had a good home life. In no way would I let my Prim to be put in one of those horrid community homes. She came back eventually and was warmly accepted by Prim, but our relationship was damaged beyond repair, and I really have no desire to try to get it back at this point.

Prim is my favorite person in the world. There's no way someone can't love her. She charms everyone she meets and finds a way to worm her way into their heart within barely weeks of knowing them. She's one of the few people on Earth that I'm sure I love. In many ways, she's more like my daughter than she is my sister. I've been the one raising her for five years.

I'm distracted from my thoughts by Prim stirring near me. She sleepily opens her eyes then settles them on me. I smile at her. "Good morning, little duck." I say. She giggles and hugs me. "Good morning, Peeta. I made some goat cheese yesterday that you can take to Gale." That's my Prim, always thinking of others. "Thanks, little duck. I'll be home soon, I promise. I love you." I kiss her forehead and walk out of the door with the goat cheese in my pocket. I jog to the electric fence that's never on and duck under it. I find my bow and arrows along with my knives in their usual hiding place. Then I do what I usually do on a Sunday. I wait on a rock at my usual meeting spot with Gale.

He jumps out into the clearing, holding something behind his back. "Whatcha got there, Hawthorne?" I ask jokingly. He narrows his eyes like he's taking this as a challenge. "Well, Mellark, I got here before you did to set up some snares. And boy did I strike gold." He holds up two rabbits and a squirrel. I gap at his kill. But I have a feeling that I'll get some today, too. Why not use this opportunity to tease him a little? "Very good, Gale. I wonder what Madge would say?" I say innocently. He blushes hard and looks down. Gale never blushes.

I laugh uncontrollably at his embarrassment. He just scowls at me. Between laughs, I tell him, "Prim..gave...us some...goat cheese." I hand some to him. "Thank you, Prim." he says happily. We eat in comfortable silence. This is our usual routine; get some hunting done, take a break then continue hunting until it's time to go home. Gale has two brothers, a sister and his mother to provide for. His mother, Hazelle, is what I wish my mother was like. When her husband died, she immediately went back to work, even with Gale's little sister, Posy, on the way. I view her as more of a motherly figure than my own mother.

When we're done eating, he looks at me and shakes his head. "What?" I ask, confused. "You tease me for having a crush on Madge, but you have a crush on the baker girl." I look down, refusing to meet his eyes. "No I don't" I lie. There is no way that I'd admit to liking anybody. "Yes you do." he persists. I snap my head up. "What makes you so sure that I do?" I challenge. He smirks. "You stare at her every time we go into trade at the bakery." I think about it.

Maybe I do look at her a lot, but mostly I'm just amazed by the way she looks. She has jet-black hair, steely gray-eyes, and olive skin. She looks like she should be living in the Seam, not in town. I shrug. "Let's just go back to hunting, okay?" I ask him. He nods and we leave our break spot to go deeper into the forest. But I can only think of one thing. The baker's daughter, Katniss Everdeen.


	2. The Baker's Daughter

After hunting for the whole afternoon, Gale and I visit the bakery to trade our squirrels for some bread. If you're lucky, the baker's wife will be in. You don't want to run into the baker. He's one of the meanest men alive, and it's no secret in the District that he beats his kids, including Katniss. My fists clench when I think of him hitting her. Luckily, his wife answers the door. "Hello, boys! My husband isn't in and I have some work to do, so I'll just redirect you to my daughter, Katniss." My hands sweat. I've never actually_ talked _to Katniss before, other than a few words.

She brings us into the bakery and calls Katniss in. She walks in with her shimmery black hair in a perfect braid like always. Her gray eyes twinkle when she sees us behind the counter. I can't help but stare at her. I quickly snap out of it. I remind myself that nothing would come of this small crush. She's a merchant. She probably thinks I'm nothing but Seam scum. "Hey, Peeta, Gale." she greets. I'm shocked by the fact that she knows my name. Well, why wouldn't she? We go to school together. Why am I so hypnotised by everything about this girl?

She takes the squirrel from Gale and examines it. "Hmmm. I'd say that this is worth at least... three rolls." she determines. Gale and I usually only get one. "Um, Katniss? Your mother gives us one per squirrel." I tell her. She scowls at me. "Just take the darn rolls, Peeta. The shot is clean through the eye, it's perfect." she growls. She shoves the bag with the rolls at me. Katniss Everdeen is one stubborn person. For some reason, this rubs me the wrong way. "We don't need charity." I tell her coldly. "It's not charity!" she rebuttles. I give in and take the bag. "Isn't the first time you've given me bread..." I mutter. She looks up at me and I can see that the reference isn't lost on her.

_It was five years ago. Mother was a living ghost, unable to get up out of her chair to care for Prim or to do anything. Prim and I were becoming dangerously thin. The money we got after Dad's death was growing scarce. I tried to make us look like we were doing well, but we hadn't eaten in days. I went out trying to sell some of Prim's old baby clothes, but no one would take it. I stumbled to the bakery to look through the trash, hoping to find some scraps of food. The baker came out and started screaming at me, threatening to call the Peacekeepers on me. I collapsed near an apple tree when he went back inside, unable to find the will to go back home and see my Prim and tell her that I didn't have any food. I just sat there waiting for death to come, because surely it must be easier than this. _

_ I suddenly heard the baker yelling something and then *WHACK*. Katniss stumbled outside with two burnt loaves of bread in her hand and a big red mark on her check. 'He hit her' I thought furiously. "Feed it to the pigs, you worthless girl! Can't you do anything right?" the baker fumed before slamming the door. As soon as he went inside, Katniss ran out in the rain towards me and handed me the bread. I took it cautiously. "Th-thank you." I told her. She smiled warmly at me then ran back inside. I put the loaves under my dad's hunting jacket and ran to my house. _

_ When I got there, Prim was waiting for me. I held up the two loaves of bread like trophies. She stared at them in disbelief, then cried hysterically. I hugged her to quiet her down, then sliced the bread to eat. I even got Mother to join us. From that day on, I felt like I owed her for what she did. I started to learn how to hunt the next day, Prim started collecting plants from the meadow. The bread was more than just food. It showed me that hope wasn't lost, that life can be good again. I never got an opportunity to pay her back._

"Peeta!" Gale's voice breakes me out of my thoughts. "What?" I ask. "We have to leave now." he says with a smirk on his face. He knows what, or should I say _who_, distracted me. I grab the bag with the rolls and wave goodbye at Katniss before going out the door. Gale is still smirking like an idiot. I know that I can't deny that I have feelings for Katniss Everdeen. At this point, I don't even want to try to deny it. But I know that it can't happen. She's on the top of the economic ladder in District 12. I'm at the bottom. Seam and merchant don't mix.

"So when's the wedding, Lover Boy?" Gale asks. "Shut up." I growl at him. He looks a bit taken-aback. "You know you like her, Peeta. Just make a move." I'm sure I'm looking at him like he's crazy. Make a move on Katniss Everdeen? Laughable. "She'd kill me, Gale." He laughs at me and claps me on the back. "Not if you learn how to do it right, my friend." he tells me. I'm in no mood to learn women skills from someone who can't even talk to the girl he likes, but I still listen to him.

"Okay, rule number one, don't go in full swing on her yet," he begins. "She'll break your nose if you do. That girl's got fire." _'Like I don't know that' _I think. Katniss is firey and stubborn, just two of the many things I respect about her. Gale continues, "Be her friend first. Look for any excuse to talk to her. If she pushes you away, don't back down, but don't be annoying about it." I nod and pretend that I'm completely absorbed in the advice he's giving me. "She's a loner in school; you be one too. Sit near her at the tree outside, pretend that you're reading a book or something, then start a conversation."

Gale's advice is actually starting to sound good. Maybe I should try and talk to her. It wouldn't hurt to try, would it? But part of me says that I'm just going to get my heart broken. Suddenly, I hear shouting. Gale and I look over our shoulders to see at least five merchant boys coming our way. We both freeze up; when merchant boys see people from the Seam, it never ends well. "What do we have here? Some Seam scum decided to show their coal-smudged faces in town." Gale looks visibly angry. He starts to walk toward them, until I stop him.

"Don't do anything stupid, Gale." I warn. I didn't come here looking for a fight. "Your kind isn't welcome here!" one of them shouts. "Why don't you go back to where you belong?" "Coal miners!" "Seam brats!" "Seam scum!" "Lice!" "Cockroaches!" They form a ring around us. I desperately look for some means of escape but I find none. I'm at the mercy of these people. I feel one of them grab my arm roughly and push me down to the ground. I squirm and thrash, but it's no use. Another one sits on top of me, placing well aimed blows to my face and neck. The pain is terrible, and my breathing becomes irregular. I try to find Gale, but I can't see anything.

I don't know what scares them off, but I feel them scramble off of me, but not before one kicks me in the ribs. I clutch my abdomen in pain. My vision is blurry and I can barely breathe. Thoughts zoom through my head, _'Where's Gale? Did they kill him? What if I die? Who will take care of Prim?' _The last thing I see is a blurry figure standing above me, then everything goes black.


	3. Savior

_I'm in the school, iddly drumming with my pencil. The teacher looks about as interested in the lesson as me. Suddenly, a siren blares. It take me a moment to realize that it's the siren for the mines, in case of an accident. At first, I don't think much of it. Until I remember that Dad is in the mines. I shake my head and tell myself that he's fine, he has to be. The teacher evacuates us into the street. Coal dust fills the air, and choas erupts from the towns people. I rush to find Prim, who's with her grade. I grab her and push further into the mayhem. That's when the explosion happens. I clutch Prim to me and scream for my dad to run. He need to get out of there..._

I wake up screaming. I'm instantly aware of a pain in my side. I wince and lay back down. "Peeta! You're awake!" I hear someone shriek. I recongnize the voice as my little duck, Prim. She hurries to my bedside and clutches my hand. Her eyes are red and puffy. She's obviously been crying, and it makes me guilty knowing that I'm the reason why. "Calm down, little duck, I'm okay." I whisper hoarsly. She nods and a new bout of tears come from her. "We we so worried! They broke a rib and almost crushed your windpipe. If they went at it for longer, they could have made you blind!" she sobs. I do my best to take her into my arms, but that's hard with a broken rib. I'm content until I remember something.

"Prim, what happened to Gale?" She bites her lip, something she does when she's nervous. My heart drops. I wonder if he's...dead. "Prim, tell me, what happened to him!" She swallows her tears and chokes out her sentence. "He's w-worse th-than you, but he-he'll be o-okay." I sigh in relief. My best friend is still alive. But something still bothers me. "Prim, how did we get here?" I ask. Her face brightens and she stops sobbing. "That girl named Katniss found you two in the street. She and her mom came to get Mother, since she is, of course, the best healer in District 12." she recounts. Mother isn't the only great healer in District 12 anymore, Prim is taking it up and is very good at it.

I owe Katniss even more now. She saved me from going blind. Heck, she might have saved me from being killed. I just don't know what to give her in return. She saved my _life_, twice. An inanimate object doesn't even start to compare to what she's given me. Maybe if I get to know her better, then I would know what to give her. Besides, I really want to get to know her better anyway. Like Gale pointed out, I like her. Some people might say that I only think I like her because she saved my life, but what about people who like for certain traits in a person they love? Some people might like someone because they're funny and kind, and I happen to like Katniss because she's a survivor, like me. People think merchants have it so great, but I know better. She tries to hide her bruises in school, but they pop up now and then.

"Prim, can I see her?" I ask. She smiles and nods her head. She goes to the door to get her, but turns back to me, grinning. "Peeta, do you like that girl?" I have no intention of lying to my little duck. "Yes, yes I do, Prim." Her smile stretches even wider now and she scurries off without another word. I'm glad Prim didn't ask if I love Katniss, because I'm not sure if I could answer that. Do I? I don't think I am, at least not yet. How could you love someone you've only talked to twice? It's not possible. I'll admit, she is attractive, brave, smart, stubborn, firey, and everything else that I'd love in a girl, but I don't love her. Yet.

My thoughts are broken when Katniss opens the door and slides in hurridly. She wears the same expression Prim did. Why would she care about me? "Peeta? Are you okay?" she asks cautiously. I nod in response. "Why did you help me?" I ask. It may seem like a harsh, blunt question, but I want to know. Why did she help me, a Seam boy that she barely knows, when she could have followed the bystander effect and let someone else take care of it? She sighs heavily and shakes her head. "I'm not a terrible person, Peeta. You're kind, I couldn't let them beat you and your friend." Oddly enough, her response dissapoints me. I don't know what kind of response I was looking for, but that wasn't it.

"Well, thank you for it." I tell her sincerely. She smiles warmly at me, just like that day in the rain. I want to thank her for that also, but not here. I get an idea of somewhere we could talk to her in private. "Did my mother say anything about when I'd be able to get up?" I ask. "She said that you can go anywhere as long as someone is with you." she answers. I hesitate before asking her, "Do you trust me?" She doesn't miss a beat. "Of course, Peeta." I smile. "Well come with me then."

I take her to the meadow. It's dark out, but the moon is shinning brightly. I look over to her and see that her beautiful face is illuminated by the moonlight. Her olive skin looks smooth, and her midnight colored hair is shimmering. Her grey eyes pop out to me. They're special, not like most eyes in the Seam. When I look at them, I see so many things. I see a star exploding, I see a beautiful blooming flower, I see puzzle pieces that have yet to be put together.

"What did you bring me here for?" Katniss asks as we sit near a tree. '_Boy where do I start?' _I clear my throat nervously. "Katniss, do you remember that day five years ago when you gave me bread?" I ask. She pauses. Her face looks shocked. Why, I'm not sure. Maybe by the fact that I remember it. Maybe the fact that I brought it up. "Yes, I remember." she whispers. "I wanted an opportunity to pay you back." I tell her. She looks at me like I'm crazy. "I don't need to be payed back! It was no big deal." she insists. '_No big deal?'_ Anger bubbles up inside me. "No big deal? How can you say 'no big deal'?" I nearly shout. "That bread saved my life. If it wasn't for you, I'd be dead, Prim would be dead, and my mother would be dead. That bread gave me hope during a very dark time in my life. It made me believe people were good! It gave me the strength to go on for my family. So don't you _ever _say it was no big deal, because it was to me!" I finnish my rant and catch my breath. She stays silent, I must have shocked her.

After a few moments of silence, she speaks up. "I didn't know it meant that much to you. I'm so sorry." I shrug my shoulders to tell her that it's fine. I can tell she's sincere about it. I look at her. She has her head down in either shame or embarresment. I look closely and see a bruise on her face, black and blue and obviously not very old. I know her father did this to her. She must cover them with makeup. Without thinking, I reach out and softly stroke her cheek, right where the bruise is. Her eyes fly open and she freezes. I continue to stroke her soft cheek and she seems to relax. "He hits you doesn't he?" I ask without thinking. I don't regret asking her. My hands have left her face, but I'm softly grabbing her hand. She hesitates with her answer. Eventually, she nods softly and I think I see a tear escape and sparkle in the moonlight. "What does he do, Katniss?" I ask. She looks at me, surprised by my assertiveness, but she also looks strangely comforted, like she trusts me.

"Beatings," she whispers, her voice quivering. "He hits us with whatever he can reach. Sometime he just uses his fists. He'll withold meals sometimes, but only with me. He's mad that I wasn't another boy. According to him, I'm just a useless girl." I think back to that day. '_Throw it to the pigs, you worthless girl.' _"If I'm wearing something he thinks is too 'revealing', he calls me names like tramp and hits me everywhere skin is exposed." I hold her hand even tighter. I want to protect her, throw myself in front of her everytime her father abuses her, but I can't, and that's what makes me mad. "I'm so sorry. That must be horrible." I console. She wipes her tears with her sleeve in an attempt to appear less weak. "It's expected." Katniss tells me in a voice that sounds cold and flat. It scares me that she's so used to it.

"You can't tell anyone." she tells me. I feel torn. I don't want her to have to stay in that house, but I don't want to break her trust. I reluctantly agree and give her hand a squeeze. She looks at me with gratitude in her big gray eyes. Without warning, she throws her arms around me. "Thank you so much, Peeta." I'm shocked, but I wrap my arms around her, too. She feels soft, and her hair smells like fruit. I could hug her forever. We stay like that for who knows how long before she pulls away. I feel a little dissapointed that I don't have her in my arms anymore, but I ignore it. I decide to make conversation. "Do you know exactly what happened to Gale?" I ask. She puts on a serious face to answer my question. "His nose is broken, along with one rib, and they bruised him down to his bone." I shudder at the visual. My best friend, bruised and bloodied at the hands of merchants.

She seems to read my thoughts. "We're not all like that, Peeta." she scolds me. I blush, as if on cue. "I know." Some of us are nice." she says. I nod my head. "Like you." I say. She blushes. "Yeah, like me, I guess." This girl is amazing. She's one of the only merchants I know who treats me like a human being rather than vermin, and she saved my life. I think I'll grow to love her. I'm not posotive yet, I still need time to make sure.

"Maybe we should head back now." Katniss suggests. I nod and lean on her to stand up. She helps me up and walks me back to my house. I see Mother and Prim waiting for me while Gale is on a poorly constructed cot in the living room. He smiles when he sees us together. "Have a nice chat without me, did you?" he jokes. I laugh, despite my pain. "How do ya feel, Gale?" I ask as Katniss helps me onto the couch. "Like crap. You?" "Same" I answer. Katniss pats me on the shoulder and to my surprise, kisses my cheek. "See you later Peeta." she says before leaving. I can't believe it. She kissed my cheek. It still feels tingly where she kissed me. By now, Gale's grinning fiercely. "Not one word." I warn. He just laughs and lays back down. I didn't know what I owed her before this evening, but I do now. I owe Katniss Everdeen my life.


	4. Love

It's been a little over two weeks since the attack, and Gale and I are much better. Our ribs haven't fully healed, but they're getting there. As for my relationship with Katniss, it's wonderful. I haven't felt like I could trust someone this much since I met Gale. At school, we're inseperable. I can tell by the stares we get that people do not approve. I don't care. I'm happy when I'm with her and that's all that matters. I've been noticing lately that her olive skin is more bruised than usual. She refused to talk about her father again after that night, and I'm not going to push her to talk about something she doesn't want to talk about. I just hope that I'm not the reason she's being beaten more than usual. I have a feeling that her father doesn't approve of her being near a Seam brat like me.

Mother and I are on slightly better terms. She's learned to stop asking me where I'm going when I leave the house, which is one of my pet peeves. Considering I've been putting dinner on the table for the past five years, I have the right to go wherever I want. Katniss convinced me to give her another try, and I told her that I'd at least attempt to. Reaping is next month, and Prim is terrified. It's her first year, so of course she's thinking the very worst. When she wakes up screaming, I hold her and assure her that she won't get picked. Over my cold dead body will my little duck die in an arena.

As I sit near the tree during break at school, I wonder where Katniss is. It's not like her to miss school. I wonder if she's sick. If she is, I'll probably see her later. She'll most likely come to my house to see Mother if she's sick enough to miss school. I'm more concerned about her than I should be. I'm sure she's fine, but what if she had an accident? What if she has a serious illness? I've never felt this much concern for anyone other than Prim. My feelings for Katniss are...complicated. I'm not sure about what I feel for her. Do I love her? Or do I just have a crush that will fade away in a few months? Only time will tell what this feeling really is.

I walk home with Prim, but I won't be staying long. An influx of deers have been in the woods of District 12, and there's no way Gale and I are going to miss it. We see a deer maybe once every two or three months, if that. This would be the haul of a lifetime. I lead Prim into our house and kiss her forehead before leaving for the fence. When I get to the meeting spot, Gale's waiting for me. "Hey, Gale. See any deer yet?" I ask. He shakes his head and stares at me. I don't know why, and it feels weird. "Umm, Gale, what are you staring at?" I ask. "What's been bothering you today?" Why did I think I could hide my concern from Gale? He knows me better than anyone. I look down and mumble, "Katniss wasn't in school today." "What?" he asks. "Katniss wasn't in school, Gale!" I say louder. He blinks like he doesn't believe me. "That's it?" he exclaims. "She never misses school. I'm afraid something happened to her." I explain. He puts his hand on my shoulder sympathetically. "I'm sure she's okay. Let's start hunting before it gets dark." he tells me. I nod and we set out further into the woods in search of deer.

We do pretty well. We get a deer and a few rabbits from my throwing knives. I put the rabbits on my belt and Gale and I drag the heavy deer into the Hob. Dad was a respected customer here, and now so am I. The vendor is getting the items we picked when I hear the name 'Everdeen'. I listen to the gossip for the first time. There's always gossip in the Hob, I just haven't payed attention until now. I hear the words 'girl', 'father', 'beat', and the one that make my stomach turn, 'missing'. I anxiously take my items and leave with Gale, worrying about Katniss in a way that I've never felt before. What happened to her? I need to find her. Even if it was just gossip, I want to get her away from that house. She doesn't deserve want happens to her there, no one does. If she has to live with me, so be it.

We arrive outside Gale's house first. His little brother, Rory, comes out to greet us. He's about Prim's age, and he has a painfully obvious crush on her. I know that Prim reciprocates it, but I would never tell either of them that the other likes them. Prim's my little sister, she doesn't need a boyfriend. "What did you two bring back?" he asks. We hold up a few cup fulls of fruit, some bread, and venison. He smiles. At his age, he knows that our food supply is very limited, so when we bring home extra food, he gets excited. His goal is to learn how to hunt like us, though I know Gale will never allow it. "Bye guys!" I shout as I walk away. They wave to me and go inside. I walk for a while before I stop. The moon is threatening to take down the sun, and something inside me tells me to go to the meadow. So I turn arround and head for the meadow.

I get there and sit near the tree where I talked to Katniss that night. _Katniss._ I'm still worried about her. If something happened to her, I don't know what I'd do. I don't even know what that means. I lean back against the tree and think of her-her hair, her eyes, her olive skin. I smile at the mental picture I just made. I'm trying to stop thinking about her when I hear a pained moan. I shoot up where I'm sitting. I look around for the source of the noise. Nothing. I'm about to sit down when I hear it again. It sounds like someone's dying. My heart leaps in my chest when I realize that it's coming from the back of the tree. My feet freeze in their spot, but I somehow force them to move to where I heard it. I see a girl with a black eye, a busted lip, and marks all over her body. That girl is Katniss.

"Oh my god, Katniss!" I yell. I sit down beside her and pull her towards me. She winces slightly but puts her arms around my neck. I'm so wrapped up in my relief of finding her that I forget she's injured. I pull back and take a look at her. It's worse than I thought. She has a black eye the size of a giant's fist, her lip is swollen and bloody. I take a look at the rest of her body. Her skin looks burnt in places, like someone took a match to her. Her arm has a deep cut on it that would make even Mother and Prim grimance. She's covered in newly formed bruises from head to toe. I gasp at her state. It physically pains me to see her this way. I pull her onto my lap. She doesn't resist and burries her face in the crook of my neck. I wrap my arms around her, as if to keep her safe from this terrible world. If she doesn't leave my arms, nothing can hurt her.

"He kicked me out." Katniss whispers after a long silence. "Why?" I ask. She narrows her eyes. "Because I can't do anything the way he wants." she spits the sentence out with venom in her voice. She hates her father, more than anything, and so do I, but I didn't think he would kick her out. Maybe it's for the best, now she can stay at with us and never have to go back and be beaten ever again. I'm so enraged I can't think straight. He had no right to do this to her. She looks like a stray kitten, all wide eyed and curled into a ball. She looks so defeated. Like she's given up on fighting her father. I won't let her give up. She's my survivor, my fighter, and it's my job to remind her why she's a survivor in the first place.

I feel hot tears run down my face without my consent. I hate crying, I feel weak. But I can't stop. I can't get the image of how she got these injuries out of my head. Katniss being in pain brings me pain. She must feel my tears because she cranes her head up out of my chest and reaches up her hand to my face weakly to wipe my tears away. I catch her wrist and hold it to my face. I don't want to let her go. Ever. I'm afraid for her. "Stay with me." she whispers weakly. I say the only thing I feel is right in this situation. "Always."

I help her up and let her lean on me. One arm is around her waist while the other is holding her hand. She's limping, and I cringe thinking of what he could have done to her leg. When we get to my house, I stop before we reach the door. She turns to me. "What?..." Without saying a word, I put one arm around her waist and another under her thighs and lift her up bridal style. She looks surprised but says nothing. I kick the door open and call for Mother. She hurries out and her face drains of color when she sees Katniss. "What happened?" "No time to explain, just help her." I say breathlessly. I put her down on the couch so Mother can work on her. Each minute is exruciating to watch. Katniss whimpers in pain when Mother puts anti-bacteria liquid on her wounds. I hold her hand throughout it all.

When Mother's done, Katniss looks like a wreck. She's pale from the pain and looks like she could be dead. "Mother, Katniss's father kicked her out. She has no where to go. Can she stay with us?" I ask. She looks like she's about to say no, but then she looks at Katniss, worn and tired. Mother nods her head rather relunctantly. I smile at her for what feels like the first time since Dad died. She looks shocked that I did something besides scowling at her. "I'll stay here tonight, just to make sure she's okay." I tell her. Mother nods then goes to bed.

I sit on the chair beside Katniss and take her hand in mine. Even in this state she's beautiful. When I thought that she was in danger, I was so worried and depressed. If she had died...no, I don't want to think about what I'd do if she died. I don't know the name of the feeling I have for her is. I remember how Mother was when Dad died. Unresponsive, nonexistent, like she wanted to die with him. I hated her for it. I thought she had abandoned us. I wonder what I'd be like if Katniss died. I impulsively lean forward and kiss her forehead. She doesn't wake up, thankfully, but I wonder if she would let me do that while she's awake. There's no confusing this odd feeling now; I'm in love with Katniss Everdeen. And I can't tell anybody. Not her, not Gale, not even Prim. No one will ever know.


	5. We Could Make it Out There

**A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and put alerts on this story. It means a lot to me! *Virtual high-five*. I'm new at fanfiction so if the basic format changes (i.e, one chapter has short paragraphs, the other has long ones), it's just me trying to figure it out.**

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Katniss suffered from a black eye, busted lip, broken leg, burnt skin, and deep cuts that night. That night that I realized I love her. That night that I resolved to tell nobody.

I've kept my resolve so far. Nobody knows, and nobody will ever know. I don't want to make life harder for either of us. I'll just have to admire her from a close distance. I'm just happy to spend time with her, and I don't plan on getting my heart broken. I'll just acknowledge my love for Prim and no one else.

I'm taking Katniss to the woods today for a lesson on edible plants and maybe I can slip in some knife throwing lessons. She's been living with us for about a week. Her mother came to see her the next day, just to make sure that she's okay. She agreed to let us take Katniss in, and she's been visiting her sometimes. Her father hasn't taken interest in the fact that she's gone. He couldn't care less about his own daughter.

The Reaping is drawing close, and we're all on edge about it. Gale has his name in sixty-two times. I have mine in twenty-four times. Katniss only has her name in about ten times, which I'm thankful for. Prim has her name in once, and I'm positive that she's safe. This is Gale's last one, which is both a blessing and a curse. A blessing because he's no longer in danger, and a curse because he has to go into the mines, but I've assured him that I'll still hunt for his family. I'm just a bit worried that Rory will decide to take out tesserae without telling Gale, since Gale won't be able to do it anymore. He's like Gale; determined and stubborn.

I wake Katniss up from her nap to go to the woods. She stretches groggily and rolls over. I take it she's not much of a morning person. "C'mon, Katniss, today's our trip to the woods" I try to coax her. "Do we have to leave right now?" she grumbles. I chuckle. "Yes, we have to leave right now, Katniss." She pouts for a second before getting up off the couch and coming with me. I take her hand and lead her to the fence. She has no difficulty getting through it because of her small frame.

I bring her to my meeting spot with Gale for a start. There's a nightlock bush near it, the most posinous berry in existance. I pluck one and hold it up so she can see it. "See this?" I ask. She nods curiously. I continue, "Eat this and you'll be dead before it reaches your stomach." She shivers at the thought. "People often mistake this for a different berry. I just wanted to make sure that one of those people doesn't include you." I say. She gives me a smile that could light up all of District 12 for a year. God, I need to stop thinking of her like this. "Have you ever thought of a different use for them, then?" Katniss asks. I think, but I can't come up with any idea of what to do with a killer berry. "No, you got any idea's?" She shrugs and we move on.

I pluck a few strawberries from a patch nearby and hand them to her. "You can eat strawberries, they're delicious and non-toxic." I tell her. She laughs and pops one into her mouth. By the look on her face, she seems to like it a lot. She swallows and nods. "They _are_ delicious and non-toxic." I laugh and take her by the hand to show her something I've never showed anyone.

We arrive at the lake Dad showed me before he died. I kept it a secret from everyone, even Gale, but something told me to show Katniss. She gasps when she sees the untouched lake and the broken down cabin. I take her closer to the lake and pull some katniss roots out of the water. I place them in her hands. She looks confused. "This is your namesake." I inform her. "Katniss?" "Yep, that's a katniss root." She examines it. "Is it edible?" she asks. "You'll be happy to know that you are toxin free." She giggles at the stupid joke.

We sit down near the lake in a comfortable silence. For some reason, I think of a conversation with Gale a few months ago.

_"We could do it, Peeta." he said. "Do what?" I asked. "Run away, live in the woods." "We have our families to worry about." I countered. "We could take them with us." he answered. I laughed at the idea. "The eight of us in the woods together? No way it would work." He just shook his head and we dropped the subject._

"We could do it." I whisper to myself. Katniss whips her head over to me. "What?" she asks. I hesitate. I want to run away. Have since I was twelve. But would Katniss agree? And what about Gale and his family? I promised that I would help his family when he was in the mines. I couldn't take his whole family with me, even if I do love them like my own family. But, do I really need to figure this all out right here, right now? No.

"We could run away into the forest, you and I, we could make it out there." I say confidently. She doesn't pause or look shocked like I thought she would, she just asks, "What about Prim and your mother?" "We'll take them with us. But we don't need to figure this all out now, just that we'll go before the reaping." She looks like she's considering it. "I'll go only if you figure this all out." she agrees.

Without thinking, I pull her into a hug. She laughs and hugs me back. She pulls her head back a little and just looks at me with her big doe eyes. I feel like I'm staring into her soul. I lean in impulsively and press my lips to her's. She responds almost immediately by putting her arms around my neck while I put mine around her waist. Her lips are so soft and warm, I could do this all day. It feels like we've known each other all our lives. My mind is screaming '_Stop you idiot, stop!'_, but I don't listen. Instead I just deepen the kiss. Eventually, she pulls away. She seems happy. I realize what I just did. I broke my resolve, I kissed her. I stand up in shock. No, I can't do this, I can't. "I-I'm sorry Katniss. I shouldn't have done that." I turn away and head for the fence. "No, come back Peeta!" she yells. I ignore her and run to the fence.

I'm such an idiot. Why did I kiss her? I ruined everything. I just broke both our hearts.


	6. Rebellion

**A/N: I love, love, LOVE the reviews on this story. For everyone who gives a review, you will get a virtual hug from Peeta. Oh, and I'll be going on a vacation on the 21st of this month for a week and I can't bring my laptop. Which means NO UPDATING!(dun dun DUN)! I'll put up another notice right before I leave.**

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Stupid.

I'm so stupid.

I kissed Katniss then left her in the woods, which she'll have trouble finding her way out of. I can't believe I just abandoned her like that. I should go back to get her, but I'm too ashamed to. I should've just let our relationship stay the way it already is, good friends and nothing more. But she was right there and my god so beautiful with her raven locks and big gray eyes...I just couldn't help myself.

I'm sitting in the meadow leaning against a tree, trying to figure out what to do. I could go back to face her, or I could stay here and hope that she can find her way home. I scoff. She wouldn't be able to find her way home if there were signs leading to it. The kindness in me wins, and I head back to the woods to help her home.

I find Katniss sitting on the ground. She hears me approach and whips her head around to meet me. She looks positively enraged with me, and she has a right to be. She glares at me, her eyes look like they're on fire. "You kissed me then ran away. I didn't think you were that kind of guy. You were just using me, huh Peeta?" she growls. The words sting. What do I tell her? _I love you but I decided to never tell you, so I had to run away? _"I-I uh, I'm sorry Katniss. I wasn't using you. I shouldn't have kissed you. That was wrong of me. I'm sorry." I get out. Her eyes soften. "It's okay, Peeta. I kissed you back, it's not like I didn't want to." she whispers the last part.

I sigh. "I wanted it, too. The point is I think we should just put this incident behind us." She looks surprised and a little...disappointed? "I don't want to put it behind us, Peeta." she whispers. I'm shocked by her reaction. Does she like me in the way I like her? Well, she did kiss me back. If she didn't why would she kiss me? She would have rejected me if she didn't. Katniss has a firey personality. She would never let someone she didn't like kiss her.

But does that matter? We're so different. She's a merchant, I'm from the Seam. She would be shunned by the people in town, maybe even teased or attacked. And I can't let that happen. "Katniss, any relationship between us is considered unacceptable to the people of District 12. If we were to be.. more than friends, you'd be an outcast." My statement angers her. "I don't care what people think about us! It's none of their business!" she shouts. "I know, Katniss, I know. I just don't want you to get hurt." I soothe her. She calms down and nods slowly in understanding.

"You could never hurt me, Peeta." Katniss whispers. I look deep into her eyes, and I know she means what she says. Maybe I should give this a chance. I love her and she loves me, that's all that matters. "Okay. We can give this a shot." I tell her. She smiles at me, a sight that I know I won't get tired of. "Should we tell anyone?" I ask. Katniss shrugs. "You can tell Gale if you want." I could tell Gale, he'd like to know that we're finally together. "Okay." I take her hand and kiss her softly. I'm so glad that I can do that now. If I know anything, it's that Katniss is mine. I'm her's. Anything else is unthinkable."I guess this a forbidden romance of sorts." she says. I shrug. "I guess you could call it that."

I walk her to the fence, where I find Gale waiting for me. He smirks when he sees us together. He always knows when something's up in my life. "Nice to see you, Katniss." he greets. "Nice to see you too, Gale." Katniss responds. He shoots me a look that says, '_what's up with you two?'. _I give him one that says '_I'll tell you later.' _"I think I'll just go back to the house." she says. She gives me a kiss on the cheek before leaving. Well, I guess I don't have to tell Gale now. He's grinning from ear to ear. "Shut up and I'll tell you later." I say. He just laughs and we head into the forest.

After we've distanced ourselves from the fence, Gale turns to me. "You and Katniss?" he asks simply. "I kissed her on impulse and now I guess you could say we're together." I explain. "I knew it!" he yells happily. I laugh at his enthusiasm. Of course he's happy for me. He's been urging me to talk to her since we met. If only he'd talk to Madge. I remember my conversation with Katniss earlier. Running away. I suppose that it's a better time than ever to tell Gale that I've taken his idea into consideration. "Gale, remember when you talked about running away?" "Yes..." he responds curiously. "Well.." I swallow nervously. "I was thinking that maybe we should do it. You, me, our families, and Katniss. Run away before the reaping." Gale's eyes widen. "Peeta..." I nod to tell him that I'm serious. He looks more nervous than happy about it.

"Peeta, about that, I've been hearing some rumours about," he lowers his voice, "about rebellion." I gasp. No one talks about going against the Capitol _ever. _The ones who do have a little 'accident' and are never heard from again. The Capitol does terrible things with their prisoners, or so I've heard. "Gale, are you crazy?" I whisper. He shakes his head. "There's a society of rebels who are against the Hunger Games and the Capitol's control over us. They're looking for a place to meet. Why not the woods?" he suggests. I'm shocked. I've always known about Gale's intense hatred for the Capitol, but I never thought that he would join a rebellion.

"Gale, think of all you'd be risking by doing this. If you're found out, who will pay? You're family, that's who." I tell him. He sighs. "Peeta, the games have gone on long enough. Isn't it about time someone did something?" he argues. Gale has a point; we can't go on like this. Life is dismal at best, and we live in constant fear that we'll either starve or be put in arena to kill other kids. I envy the people in the richer Districts, who always have food in their stomachs and are stupidly unafraid of the games. But there are risks to rebelling. "If this fails, we could be killed, or worse. You know that, right?" I ask. He nods. "What about running away?" I ask. He shakes his head. "No good. If we rebel we have to stay and fight." Things just got a lot more complicated.

"Are you sure about this, Gale?" I ask him. He nods again. "I talked to Madge outside her house today. She invited me in. When she went to go get something, I saw an announcement on the television. Peeta, District 8 is already there." I freeze in my place._'District 8 is already there.' _This changes everything. Another poor District has joined the struggle for freedom. Why can't we, as the poorest District, join too? "Well, congratulations on getting the balls to talk to Madge." He chuckles light-heartedly.

"I'll think it over, okay?" I tell him. "Okay." he agrees. We part ways at the fence. As I walk home, I think about the offer. I could help put an end to the nightmare we live in, but freedom has a price. And the price is heavy. If I run away, my own problems are solved, but I'm abandoning everyone else, and that's all I'm doing, running away. Shouldn't I face my problems? What do I do? And more importantly, what do I tell Katniss?

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**A/N: Oooohhhh, rebellion! I want YOUR opinion. Should Peeta and Katniss;**

**a) Run away**

**b) Rebel**

**c) Get reaped**

**What do you think? Reveiw or PM me your decision. And may the odds be ever in your favor!**


	7. AUTHOR'S NOTE, NOT A CHAPTER

**A/N: Okay, so far rebellion and run away are tied for first. TODAY IS YOUR LAST CHANCE TO VOTE BEFORE I UPDATE! Who knows, maybe I'll combine two of the idea's. *Mischevious smile*. Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games or any of the characters. If I did, Peeta wouldn't be hijacked.**

**-Love,**

**Yogie (aka Brilliant Brunette Beauty)**


	8. Decisions

**A/N: The reviews have been put in, and a decision has been made! What is it, you may ask? Well, you'll just have to read to find out. So, will they run away, rebel, or get reaped? Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games trilogy or any of the characters. If I did, Gale would have given up on Katniss a loooong time ago. P.S. If you're wondering when I'll put in a Katniss P.O.V., well, I'm not sure. Since their roles are reversed, I thought that I'd make it in Peeta's P.O.V. mostly. Plus, I have an easier time doing it in Peeta's P.O.V. Katniss is a bit unpredictable. She can be really sweet or really cold, and little things tend to set her off.**

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I weigh my options very carefully. The first thing on my plate, running away.

If I run away with Katniss and my family, we escape our troubles given to us by our District. Heck, maybe other people thought of this before me. Maybe there are other people out there who ran away, too. Maybe there's a community of some sorts. On the down side, what if I get reaped and I don't show for it? Would they track me down, or assume me dead? Probably assume me dead. It happens all the time here, you die and get burried. No one knows you're dead unless they're told or they ask. Also, I'd have to leave everyone and everything I know and only converse with my family and Katniss. No Gale, no Rory, or Hazelle, or Posy, or Vick.

Next option, staying and rebelling. I can help make a difference in this world. It seems like the noble thing to do. Instead of saving my own butt, I could help save us all. But, it's not my responsibility. My family and Katniss are, even though Katniss would argue otherwise. She doesn't want to be a 'burden', as she'd say. I assure her that she's not, but of course she wouldn't listen. I could turn my back on the whole thing and decide to not rock the boat, or I could fight along with the rebels.

My last option, drop this all and continue life as is, no running away, no rebelling. I wouldn't have to look over my shoulder constantly, or be afraid for my loved ones. But if I stay and I get reaped, I'm done for, and I'd feel like a complete idiot. I'd be constantly regretting not taking the oppertunity that was given to me. And do I want to continue living life in this god-forsaken place? I'm pretty happy under the circumstances. But life could be so much better.

I sit and think about what's best not for me, but for me and Katniss. I just found her, I'm not going to risk losing her. I love her so much, and I refuse to put her in danger. Then I start to think about what Katniss would say, and I realize that the answer is so obvious. Why did I not see this earlier? I know what I must do now. It's been right in front of my face the whole time. I'm positive that I'm doing the right thing. Now I just have to talk to Katniss and Gale about my decision.

I walk into my house, where Prim's waiting for me. She looks up at me with her bright blue eyes that so closely mirror my own. I see fear in them, like an animal before I shoot it. This look doesn't suit my little sister. "Peeta, I'm scared." she whispers. It breaks my heart to see my little duck scared. It's my job to protect her, she should never have to be scared of anything. I pull her into a big hug and stroke her hair. "It's okay Prim," I console her. "You won't get picked. You only have your name in once. You'll be safe. I promise." She calms down a bit. She'll get used to it when she goes to more reapings, as chilling as that may sound. "Where's Katniss, little duck?" She giggles, probably because she knows I love Katniss. Ah, the innocence of a child. Prim seems to know everything that I'm feeling. "She's in the meadow. She said to tell you to come see her when you get back." I smile and ruffle her hair before heading out towards the meadow.

I jog out to the tree where we always end up meeting. Sure enough, I find Katniss leaning back on the tree. She smiles when she sees me. I sit down next to her and take her hand. "I love you." she says confidently. I'm shocked. I never thought she'd say that to me. "I love you too, Katniss." I kiss her gently and put my arm around her. "Katniss, I need to tell you something." I say. "Sure, shoot." I take a breath and begin. "I talked to Gale after you left. He told me about a group of people that are..." I lean in near her ear and whisper, "rebelling" She puts her hand over her own mouth in shock. "Are you crazy? Don't say stuff like that!" she whispers back angrily.

I squeeze her hand. "It's okay, they don't bug the meadow." I say calmly. "How do you know?" she challenges. "Because, it's not an enclosed space." This seems to convince her. In all truth, I'm just guessing. But I've been told I'm a good lier. "He told me that they've been looking for somewhere to meet and he suggested the woods. I told him about our plan to run away, but he said he wanted to stay and fight. I told him I'd think about it. Well, I have and I think I've made a decision." Katniss cuts me off. "What about discussing it with me? It affects me too, doesn't it?" she demands. I realize that I've left her out of it. I should have asked her first, I can't just assume that I know what she would say.

"I'm sorry, Katniss. It does affect you. What do you think we should do?" I've already made up my mind, but I want Katniss's input. "I just want to run, Peeta. Take your family and go. I love you all and I don't want to put you guys in danger by..." she lowers her voice, "rebelling" I swallow nervously. This is where Katniss and I differ. "Katniss, I want to join the fight." She looks at me wide-eyed. Obviously, she doesn't agree. "I don't want any of you to get hurt. I'll gladly put my own life on the line, but I refuse to let you three get hurt." she says determindly. Katniss loves so fiercely, she'd rather give her life than she someone she loves be put in danger. It's one of the many things I love and admire about her.

"Katniss, if we're put in danger, I swear we can take off into the woods. But for now, we have a duty to our District to help fight against our oppressors. We need to stay and fight." Katniss looks into my eyes, searching for an answer. I get one when she presses her lips to mine. "I'll stay with you, Peeta. Always." she says. "Always." I repeat. "District 12 can't do this alone, though." she insists. I lean close to her ear. "Katniss, it's already started in District 8." I whisper. "Wow.." she begins. "Yeah, wow." I agree.

We walk over to Gale's house hand in hand, our hearts absolutely brimming with love for each other. I'm relieved that I don't have to run away and leave Gale here. He will always be like my brother, I wouldn't be able to just leave him here. Gale answers the door. As soon as he sees us, he smiles. "Let me guess. You've decided to talk my suggestion?" We nod simultaneously. He laughs and motions for us to come in. We sit down and wait for him to speak. Instead, he slips us a piece of paper. I pick it up curiously. It reads:

_Sunday, 12:00 p.m._

_Forest clearing w/tree stumps_

_Memorize then properly dispose of paper._

I hand it to Katniss. Her eyes scan the page. After she finnishes, she looks confused. Like me, she's probably thinking of ways to dispose of the paper so no one can read it. Her gray eyes twinkle with mischef before she pops the paper into her mouth and swallows. Well, that's a good way. I laugh a little bit before she shoots me a glare that makes me shut-up. "We'll be there." she tells Gale. He looks at both of us then nods.

I leave the house with a new sense of pride. I'm doing something that could really help our District, maybe even all of Panem. When Katniss and I get home, Mother and Prim are already in bed. "Today was..." she starts "Interesting." I finnish. She laughs and nods. "I just hope we did the right thing." she says worriedly. I'm quick to pull her into my arms to reassure her. "We are doing the right thing. We're making a difference. Making this world better for our children." I don't look at her face for her reaction of me saying 'our children'. Having a family with Katniss is one dream I don't think I'll achieve. "I guess." she murmmers.

"Remember what I said, though." she warns. "If anything bad happens to you or your family, I'm pulling out of this." I nod in agreement. "Goodnight, Peeta. I love you." My heart leaps with joy when she says this. I could never ask for anything better than to be able to love and be loved by this girl. Instead of giving her a hug, I craddle her face and give her a passionate kiss. Her lips are sweet and soft. When I pull back, she looks shocked. "I love you too, Katniss." The perfect way to end the day.

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**A/N: So, what do you think? To the people who didn't vote for rebel: Don't worry, I might put a twist or two in that could give you your preferance. I'm not promising ANYTHING. I'm making this all up as I go along. I have a passion for writing and I don't want to have to plan the whole story out before I even get there. I like having your input. The final score was...**

**Rebel- 9**

**Run away- 7**

**Reap- 6**

**Many of you were strongly against them being reaped. I get that. A lot of stories have that in them. Please review, I love seeing new reviews! I'll update later!**


	9. Meeting

**A/N: We did it! We reached 40 reviews! Thank you guys so much! You're awesome readers. So, how do you think the meeting Gale wrote about in the note will go? Read to find out. Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games trilogy or any of the characters, except for the ones I'm making up in this chapter.**

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Today's the day. The meeting of the rebels. Today, my life changes forever. My stomach has been doing somersaults all morning. I barely ate anything all day. Neither has Katniss. We're both nervous wrecks, and a little bit afraid of what will happen if someone is to catch us. Because it's being held in the woods, we're probably safe, but what if someone in the group is a Capitol loyalist? Then again, what person living in this District really has a reason to like the Capitol?

Katniss and I get to the fence a few minutes before the meeting is supposed to start. We walk to the meeting place in silence, both too nervous to say anything to each other. Our lives will never be the same. We both know it. My mind starts to race. Did I make the right decision? Am I sure I'm doing the right thing? Oh god, I'm so nervous. Maybe I should just run far away into the forest right now...

"We've been expecting you." I'm startled out of my thoughts by a clear, strong voice. I see a young man, no older than Gale, with dark brown hair and gray eyes with flecks of green in them. His olive skin is a dead give away of Seam. He reaches his hand out. "Terrin Vanders." he greets. I shake his hand. "Peeta Mellark." He nods and shakes hands with Katniss. "Katniss Everdeen." He nods again. Even though I've only known him for a few seconds, I can immediately tell that Terrin has this intensity in the way he looks at you and the way he says things. He's definately a great leader. "May I ask, how old are you?" he directs his question at both of us. "Sixteen." we say in unison. "Seventeen." Terrin says in response.

Terrin gestures for us to sit down on two of the tree stumps. One by one, each memeber of the group stands up and introduces themselves to us, except for Gale. The first one is a girl named Thenna, who is fifteen years old with red hair and green eyes, Terrin's sister. She's a hyper little thing, nothing like her brother. She has a scar on her hairline from getting sliced by Peacekeepers for being 'disobedient' That's where her rebellious nature comes from.

The second is a boy named Reed. He says he doesn't know his exact birthday, but that he's around eighteen. He has strawberry blonde hair and gold eyes, like cat's eyes. He's very shy and scared, and he has a right to be. His uncle is a Peacekeeper, and he says that he's terrified that he'll find out what he's doing.

The last member is a girl named Aggie. She's only thirteen, and petite looking. She has light brown hair and hazel-green eyes. She seems excited about her role in the group, but serious about it, too. She reminds me of Prim. My heart aches when I think of a little girl like her getting hurt on account of the rebellion.

After everyone is done introducing themselves, Terrin brings us up in front of the stumps. "You want to become a rebel? Tell us why. You first, Peeta." I'm frozen. I have to make a speech? Sure I'm good with words, but what can I say? I rack my brain with the reasons why I decided to rebel. Then it comes so easily. Just start from the time my life changed.

"I'll start from the beginning. Five years ago, my dad died in a mine accident, along with Gale's. Life is tough in this District, especially without someone to bring home food. So, I turned to the woods. I started to hunt. I did anything and everything to keep my mother and sister alive. As long as they were fed, I was happy. It didn't matter if I had to take out tesserae a million times, I just had to take care of my family. I've just ignored the fact of the games, acted as if it doesn't exist. But what kind of life is it when you have a daily battle with starvation? What kind of life is it when you could have to kill other kids for sport?" I hear mumbles of agreement coming from people. "Why should some Districts have food and luxery while everyday for us is a grueling struggle to survive? This country is sick. Only the absolute worst people take joy in seeing kids kill other kids. They won't stop, until we stop them!" Cheers erupt from the crowd. I know I've done great. I mime a bow and go over to Katniss. "Top that, sweetheart." She smiles, like she has some devious plan.

She starts to pace. "Now I do not have to stand here and tell you the conditions in District 12 are terrible. Families can barely feed their kids. We live in constant fear that we'll be thrust into an arena by these people. They view it as a celebration. We have no rights, we have no say," murmmers of praise ripple through the audience. "We have no dignity! We need to reclaim our lives as ours, not the Capitol's! DOWN WITH THE CAPITOL!" The audience stands up and claps loudly. My mouth hangs open. I thought that Katniss was bad with words. But she doesn't have to be good with words to know what's in her heart. And those words definitely came from her heart.

Terrin comes up to us and puts his hands on our shoulders. "You two are passionate. I like that. You're in." "Congrats!" Thenna yells. Everyone laughs. It feels like we're part of this big weird family already. Katniss and I take a seat on the tree stumps. "You mentioned a sister. So, what's your sister like?" Aggie asks. Of course the little girl who reminds me of Prim asks about Prim. "Her name is Primrose, Prim for short. She's got blonde hair and bright blue eyes. She's a healer like my mother and she loves people." I say proudly. "She sounds lovely." Reed says dreamily. I have a feeling that he's in his own little world he uses to escape his troubles. Katniss smile broadly. "She is."

"So, Reed, you said that you don't know your exact birthday. Why?" Katniss asks. I hope the story isn't a tragic one. He looks off into the distance. His eyes are distant, too. "I'm an orphan; always have been. I lived in one of those horrible community homes for my whole life until my eighteenth year. That's how I know I'm eighteen. They kick you out if you're eighteen." I'm strangely happy that I know this. Now I know why he's in his own world. He wants to forget the past of the community home. I don't blame him. I'm not blind to the kids who come to school looking pale and lifeless, then disappear all together.

"Are you the leader, Terrin?" I ask. He gives off this vibe of the wise and all-knowing leader. I just assumed that he was leading the group. "I guess you could say that." he laughs. "I decided to start a rebel group after Thenna got a gash in her head from a rouge Peacekeeper. I have always hated the Capitol, but that was the last straw. I couldn't let them walk all over me anymore." I nod. If anything happened to Prim, I'd murder the person who did it, but he must be more level-headed when it comes to his family.

"Have any of you besides Gale been in the woods before?" I ask. They all look at each other and shake their heads. Of course they haven't. Gale and I have never seen anyone else in the woods. "So you don't know your way around here?" They shake their heads again. I nearly laugh. They choose a meeting place that they don't know their way around. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it." Katniss says.

"If you have any secrets, tell them now." Thenna demands softly. Do I have any secrets? Well, my weapons. I guess I should tell them about that, but I'll keep the exact location a secret. "I have some knives and a bow and arrows hidden somewhere in the woods." They all look at me curiously. "Good move." Aggie says innocently. We all laugh, though she looks confused as to why.

When we part near the fence, we all wave to each other and say goodbye. Everyone heads to the Seam section. These people are my neighbors, and I never knew. Well, I know them now. Katniss and I walk hand-in-hand back to the house, happy with today's outcome. I really like everyone in the group. They seem really kind. Mother sits waiting at the table when I get home. She looks frustrated and annoyed. "Where have you been?" she demands. What right does she have to ask where _I've _been? Where was _she_ five years ago? "I was out, Mother." I say through clenched teeth. "Where? I have a right to know where my son goes to all day." She will not get off my case, will she? "I'm the provider of the family. I can go wherever I please, and if you don't like it, I'm sorry. But you forced me to grow up too fast. You're the reason I act like I'm thirty instead of sixteen. I'm trying to have a relationship with you, I really am, but I can't if you keep acting so...so.." I search for the word. "_Motherly._"

I go to my room with Katniss close behind. She looks at me with sympathy. "Peeta, she was just worried about you. She can't stop being your mother." she pleads. I take her hand in mine and stroke the back of her hand with my thumb. "I know, I just resent her for leaving us." She nods and leans her head on my shoulder. We sit like that for a while, just soaking up the feeling of being close. I kiss her softly before she leaves to go to bed. As I lay down, I wonder what the near future will bring. Reaping is in a week. I hope to god my loved ones are safe. Because I have four more loved ones now.

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**A/N: Like it? The new characters have odd names, I know, but doesn't everyone in The Hunger Games? Just so you know, Aggie's physical appearance is my own. I ran out of descriptions! Review please! And you guys are the BEST! Sorry It took so long to get up, I had to make a cake today, took forever!**


	10. District 8

**A/N: Hello, peoples! The reaping will be in the next chapter, I promise. I wanted to do another chapter before the reaping so you could get to know the rebel group better. Review please! P.S. _To Claire_: Thank you so much for pointing Katniss's nature out to me. I guess I was a bit to determined to fill in the holes in Peeta's personality that the original series gave us that I forgot Katniss! From this chapter on, she'll be the Katniss you know, except not as closed off and desperate for survival as her upbringing was different. My relationship with the book Katniss is... complicated. I tend to hate her sometimes because of how rude and unnecassarily spiteful she can be. I'll try to develop her more. And I'll explain the uprising, too.**

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That conversation a few nights ago put a bigger strain on my relationship with Mother. I still think she has no right to act like she can tell me what to do. I act more like the adult than she does. Don't get me wrong, I want to have a relationship with her, but a sixteen year old should not have to be the parent in the family.

There's a meeting today in the same place in the woods. I'm actually looking forward to it. I get to see everyone again. Terrin, Thenna, Reed, Aggie. I miss them all. Apparently, Terrin has some big news for us. I'm hoping it's good news. I don't think I can take any bad news this week.

The reaping is in a few days, and I'm nervous, but not for myself. I'm more nervous for Gale and Terrin, who have their names in so many time. Well, so do I, but not as much as them. I'm sure that Prim and Katniss are okay, along with Reed, Thenna and Aggie. At least I hope.

I sit in the meadow with Katniss before the meeting. We're holding hands and talking. Talking about the reaping, school, our favorite colors. Just random things. Being with her is one of the only things at the moment that makes me happy. We we just made for each other, there's no way around it.

"What's your favorite color?" she asks suddenly. I think a little bit. I never really set a favorite in my head. The first thing that comes to mind is the beautiful sunsets I watched after Dad died. They gave me something to look forward to every night. "The color of the sunset." I say. She nods. "I like green. Like the color of the forest. I've always wanted to run away into the forest since I was little. It always seemed so... never ending. Like I could just run in it forever and nothing would ever get me." she finnishes her explanation, then looks off into the distance, obviously deep in thought.

"Can you teach me how to use a bow and arrows?" she asks suddenly. I'm taken by surprise. "Can I ask why?" She laughs a bit sarcastically. "Peeta, we're rebelling. If I don't know how to use any weapon, I'm useless. I want to know how to fight. I'm ready to defend what's mine, what's ours." She speaks with so much conviction that I say yes immediately. She grins. "Just watch me be better than you." "Hmm, is that a challenge, Everdeen?" I ask. "Yes, it is a challenge, and I intend on winning it, so be prepared." she says slowly, her eyes narrowing on me. If she was bigger she'd be very intimidating.

"Oh yeah, Everdeen? I've been hunting since I was eleven. Top that." I say jokingly. She seems to take it differently. "Shut up, Mellark. I'll take you any day, any time." she says, deadly serious. I grin widely. "Follow me, then." I say. I take her by the hand and lead her to my secret hiding place for my bows and arrows. I give her the arrow bag, which she slings over her shoulder. I show her the basic stance for a bow by doing it myself. When I give it to her, she seems like a natural at it. "Square your shoulders a little bit more." She does like I tell her. "Okay, if you can hit that hole in the tree right there," I point to it, "You win." She narrows her eyes again. "Not if, when." she says confidently. She pulls the bow back beautifully, with no flaws to her stance or anything else.

She releases the bow quickly. Dead on the target. My mouth flies open. She's a natural. Hey, at least I still have throwing knives to be the best at. "Shut your mouth, Mellark, you'll catch flies." "How did you do that?" I ask, dumbfounded. She shrugs. "I'm a natural, I guess." We sit back down and continue to talk. When we come to the subject of family, I remember that she has two brothers. I haven't heard anything about them from her. "Why don't you ever talk about your brothers?" I ask. She stares at me with an angry look in her eye. I haven't been told it yet, but I already know that she hates her brothers. "I visited the bakery one day when you were out." she starts through clenched teeth. "My oldest brother opened the door. As soon as he saw that it was me, he slammed the door in my face. You close the door on me, I close the door on you." I guess that makes sense. She can hold a fierce grudge.

We walk to the meeting hand-in-hand, Katniss with a triumphant smile on her face. We get there after everyone else and take a seat on two stumps. Terrin is in front of the stumps. When Katniss and I take our seats, he begins talking. "Hello, nice to see all of you again. By now, most of you know of the uprising in District 8-" "Why did they start one, though?" Reed asks, confused. Terrin smiles politely. "I was getting to that. Now, we all know that conditions in District 8 are terrible, with all the smog and pollution, having people work long hours. It started with a small group, just like us. But they had the mayor on their side, along with other important figures. Soon enough, the whole District was in an outrage after the group had gotten around to people, pointing out the enviorment the had to suffer in everyday could be changed if they were willing to try to change it. The last straw came when a widespread epidemic of a mysterious illness started to plauge the children of the District. The pollution is probably to blame. While the adults are immune because they grew up in it before it got so bad and gradually got used to it being worse, the children had only been exposed to the very worst all their lives. The mayor agreed that rebellion was the best option, even if they are blown off the map in the process. And if we or some other District don't join them soon, that may very well happen. And because we're the outer-most District, we may become the example." I shudder at the thought. We could be blown off the map, just like District 13.

Terrin smiles a bit mischeviously. "We have someone else on our side." When he doesn't continue, Katniss shouts, "For the love of- just tell us who!" I stife my laugh. "You may recongnize his name. Finnick Odair." I hear Katniss gasp next to me. Finnick Odair, the victor? Why would he be helping a group of rouge kids from District 12? "A victor is helping _us_?" Gale asks in disbelief. Terrin nods. "I met him on the victory tour when he came to District 12. We bumped into each other after he bribed the guards to let him loose so he could look around, in disguise, of course. We started talking before I knew who he really was, and I tried to enlist him for the group, which I had just started. Even as a kid I was rebellious, of course I didn't say my age. He surprised me by pulling off his wig and taking out colored contacts. He said that he was already trying to start something in 4. And he isn't alone. Other victors have joined him in his struggle. They figure, if a career District rebels, it will set the standard." I'm floored by Terrin's story. "Well I guess your our most valuable asset then." Katniss jokes. We all laugh, but we're still getting over our amazement.

Terrin puts on a solem face. "Now, it's time to discuss the reaping." he says grimly. I squirm uncomfortably. I don't want any part of any reaping talk. "I have a high chance of getting picked." he states simply. He looks like he's come to terms with the fact that he could, indeed, be reaped. "If this should happen, I have decided that Katniss should take over as leader." We all stare at Katniss. I'm sure everyone else is wondering '_why her?_', but I know her well enough to know why. Even Terrin saw it. She's got determination, she says what's in her heart, and she's passionate, a perfect leader. "Stop staring at me." she grumbles. We all look away in shame. I have a feeling she'd make a great leader, I just hope that Terrin's staying around a little bit longer.

The meeting ends like it did yesterday, with us saying goodbye at the fence. But this time, Katniss takes me by the hand and drags me to the meadow. I don't question it. We sit by our regular tree. "Peeta, we both know that the reaping is in a few days, we can't pretend like we don't. I just wanted to say something first." She takes a deep breath. "If I get reaped, don't mourn me. Move on, find someone else, be happy. Just forget about me." I open my mouth to tell Katniss that she _won't_ get reaped, that I _can't _forget about her, but she cuts me off. "Don't you dare say that I won't be reaped." Katniss warns dangerously. So I don't say that she won't get reaped. It's true, I can't see into the future.

"I could never forget you." I whisper. This only makes her angry. "Darn it, Peeta, why would you waste your time harping on my memory when you could go find someone else and be happy?" she shouts. "I want everyone to be happy if I die!" She hits my arm in frustration. I grab her wrist and attempt to calm her down. "Katniss, you're thinking too far ahead. You haven't been reaped, and the odds-" "Stop right there, Effie Trinket." she says. We laugh despite the earlier situation. "Peeta, just promise me that if something happens to me, you'll at least try to go on normally." she says. I know that I'd have to lie, but it's worth it. "Okay, Katniss." She seems pleased with my answer. If only I was telling the truth.

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**A/N: Sorry if this one isn't as good, I was a bit rushed. Anyway, review please! And once again, a big thank you to Claire for giving me constructive criticism that really helped me write this chapter.**


	11. Reaping

**A/N: Here it goes, the reaping (dun dun DUN)! Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games trilogy or any of the characters. I do, however, own Terrin Vanders, Thenna Vanders, Reed, and Aggie. So you can't take them! Sorry, I'm really possesive of my characters...**

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Today is reaping day, the day when families are torn apart by the Capitol. The day we all mourn someone who hasn't died yet, but will undoubtedly be dead in a few weeks time. The tributes from District 12 never make it, haven't in almost twenty-five years. We're written off from the start, never even considered. Our victor, Haymitch Abernathy, is considered the least liked victor. I mean, who would you care about more: a drunk like Haymitch or a sex-symbol like Finnick? Exactly.

When I wake up, I'm happy to see that Prim is still asleep, which means that she didn't have to endure any nightmares last night. Like me, she wakes up screaming if she does have them. I slowly get out of bed, careful to not wake Prim, and make my way to where Katniss sleeps. Not surprisingly, she's up too. She looks like she didn't sleep last night. Well, I didn't really sleep either, but she looks like she didn't even try to.

"Good morning, Katniss." I say. She just scowls at me. "What's so good about it, huh Peeta?" she snaps. I throw my hands up in defeat and sit down on the couch. "Just morning, then." I answer. Katniss's demeanor changes after I say this, like a switch flipped in her head. "Sorry, Peeta, I'm just sorta..." "Nervous?" I finnish for her. She slaps my arm. "Stop doing that!" she demands. "Doing what?" "Finnishing my sentences! It's..." "Creepy?" I finnish. "Darn you!" she exclaims. I just laugh and get up to go to the woods, earning a scowl from her.

"Wait!" Katniss calls from inside. I spin around. "What?" I question. She stands up and walks up to the door near me. "I want to go with you." she says. I shrug to signify that I don't mind. She smiles and walks to the forest with me. I look back every so often and see her amazed expression when she sees the trees towering above us, or a bush of berries. She looks like she should have been the one to grow up in the woods, not me. She seems just so happy to be here, like a kid in a candy store. I make a quick stop to get my bow and arrows, which I hand to Katniss, and my throwing knives. We've been doing this for a few days, and I've seen how much of a natural she is at the bow.

We make our way to my meeting spot with Gale, who's busy spending time with Madge today. Yes, they're together now, and they're very happy. We sit down on a huge rock together and wait for some activity. We are rewarded when a bird rustles in a bush. I wink at Katniss, who smirks and gets into position with the bow. I pick up a rock and throw it at the bush. At least three birds try to fly away frantically. Katniss shoots and hits one straight in the eye. It falls down, dead. She gives me a look that says, '_see? I told you I could do it._'. I laugh and go over to collect the bird.

We put away our weapons and walk to the Hob together. Katniss hands Greasy Sae her bird and gets some fruit in return. Katniss thanks her and steps away. I'm about to do the same when I see something that catches my eye. It's a pin with a mockingjay on it. I remember that when Dad sang, the mockingjays stopped singing and listened to him finnish his song. I have always loved these birds, especially because they were never meant to exist. Yes, the Capitol royally screwed up by making the jabberjays, a bird that was supposed to spy on enemies and could repeat what they said. The enemies caught on, though. They gave the jabberjays false information to feed the Capitol. When the Capitol realized that they were being fooled, they left the jabberjays out in the wild to die off. Instead, the jabberjays mated with mockingbirds to survive, creating the mockingjay. They can copy a tune, but they can't talk like the jabberjay. They're magnificant creatures.

I pick up the pin and examine it. It's gold-colored and shiny. "How did you get this?" I ask Greasy Sae. She looks around to see if anyone is watching us before turning back to me. "Mrs. Undersee gave it to me for nothing. She seemed more than happy to be rid of it." she whispers. I have no idea why anyone would want to get rid of it. It's beautiful. "How much?" She just shakes her head. "Take it. It's free." I'm shocked. I always have to pay for everything here. I just thank her and leave with Katniss. "What took you so long?" she asks. I don't answer her. Instead I take the pin out of my pocket and pin it on her shirt. She looks at me curiously. "Where did you get this?" I point to the Hob and keep walking. She shrugs and follows me.

When we get home, it's about an hour before the reaping. Mother greets us at the door nervously. "Katniss, do you want to wear a dress of mine from my merchant days for the reaping?" she asks timidly. Katniss nods. "Thank you, Mrs. Mellark." Mother leads Katniss away while I get dressed in my good clothes, a white button-down shirt, black pants and dress shoes. I use what little gel we have to gel my hair back. When I look in the mirror, I don't see me. I see the fake person the Capitol is making me be. I wish I could just wear my hunting clothes, the clothes I feel free in. In this I feel like a pig waiting for slaughter.

Someone knocks on my door. "Come in." I call. Katniss walks in, and the sight of her takes my breath away. She has on a pale blue dress that looks sentimental and refined. Her long black hair is tied back into a complicated braid. But her eyes show her discomfort in the dress. I pull her to me and hug her tightly. "You're beautiful." I whisper. She laughs. "Of course _you _would think that." I laugh with her. "_Anyone _would think that. You're beautiful inside and out." I tell her sincerely. I kiss her on the cheek. She shoves me away playfully and leaves for the kitchen with me following. Prim is sitting at the kitchen table with a white blouse and a tan skirt on. Her hair is in two seperate braids. She looks absolutely petrified. Her fearful eyes land on me before she catapults herself into my arms. I'm taken by surprise but wrap my arms around her anyway.

"They'll pick me, I know it!" Prim cries. I shush her and hold her tighter. "No they won't. It's your first year, Prim. You only have one slip in there. It won't happen. I promise." She calms down and lets go of her hold on me. "Okay, now it's time to get Gale's family and leave for the town square." I tell her softly. She nods and grabs onto my hand as I lead everyone out. We walk to Gale's house in total silence. None of us have anything to say. When we pick up Gale and his family, none of them have anything to say either. Even little Posy can sense the discomfort in the air. Katniss and I walk behind the others.

Suddenly, she freezes in her place. I tug on her hand, but she doesn't move. "What's wrong, Katniss?" I ask. She trembles slightly. "My father will be there." she whispers. I realize that she hasn't seen him since he kicked her out. He still scares her. "I won't let him touch you." I assure her and give her a kiss. She nods to herself and continues walking.

When we reach the town square, Prim starts to panic. To my surprise, Katniss comforts her. "Don't worry, Prim. The sooner you do it, the sooner it's done." Prim disappears into the twelve year-old section, while Katniss and I go to the sixteen year-old section. I grasp Katniss's hand reassuringly. She looks up at me with a sad smile before looking around the square to find someone. I do the same. My eyes meets Terrin's. He gives me a weak thumbs up. I do the same. I look around and see Gale. He mouths to me, '_We'll be okay._' I nod and turn back to the front.

Effie Trinket waddles onto the stage with a blindingly bright orange wig and orange tinted makeup. Her tight outfit is also bright orange with ruffles all over it. "Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor." she shrieks in her shrill voice. I can feel Katniss cringe next to me. The mayor reads from the Treaty of Treason, and I zone out. I've heard this so many times. It's all about the Districts giving up the rebellion and how the Hunger Games came about as punishment and blah, blah, blah.

"It's time to select one young man and one young woman from District 12 as tributes in the 74th annual." Effie's voice rings out. My attention is brought back to the stage. "Ladies first." she announces. My chest and stomach tighten. Katniss, Prim, Thenna, and Aggie are safe. They have to be. Effie fishes a name out of the bowl. I hold my breath. She holds it up near her face and announces,

"Kyli Winston!"

I release the breath I was holding. A merchant girl about seventeen years-old with white blonde hair and green eyes walks up. Her face is as plae as her hair. When she gets up onto the stage after what feels like an eternity, Effie waddles over to the male bowl. She picks out a slip. Not only do I have to worry about myself, but I have to worry about Gale, Terrin and Reed. I close my eyes for a second and wait for it.

"Terrin Vanders!"

No. No, this is not happening. This is impossible. How could this happen to Terrin? Gale had more in than him, most of the boys in the Seam probably have more in than him. Oh god. Terrin walks up to the stage with a emotionless face. He's playing the game already. If he was to cry or scream or show any kind of fear, he would be labeled weak. When he gets up to the stage, Effie wishes us a 'happy Hunger Games' and has Terrin and Kyli shake hands. They are whisked away to the Justice building for visitors. Katniss and I lunge at the oppertunity to visit Terrin.

When we get to the entrance, Thenna, Aggie, Reed, and Gale are waiting for us. Thenna isn't showing sadness. She's showing anger. "Why him? He's always been a great boy! The best brother you could ask for!" she rants. Aggie puts her hand on Thenna's shoulder. "He can make it. I know he can." she says determindely. "Yes, he's strong. And he could outsmart them." Reed adds. A Peacekeeper marches up to us. "All together or seperate visits?" he asks us. "Together." we all say in unison. He nods and lets us into the room they are keeping him in.

Terrin whips his head around when he hears the door open. Before he can open his mouth, Thenna launches herself in his arms. "Terrin, you have to win. You have to!" she cries. He prys her off of him so he can look at her face. "I'll try, Thenna." he says. "No." Katniss interjects. We all turn to her, surprised by her interruption. "No, you will not just _try_, you will _win_." she demands. She gets closer to him and looks him straight in the eyes. "Listen, Terrin. You may not know how to use a weapon, but you're smart. Think of what Haymitch did. Do you really think he went around killing people? No, he outsmarted them. So can you. You will come back to us, Terrin. And you know it." she finnishes. Terrin looks shocked but he just nods.

We all say our good-byes to Terrin and leave the Justice building. Thenna is a wreck. We say good-bye to each other very sadly. I'm hesitant to part ways with them because I feel like if I do, I'll never see them again. Katniss and I walk to Mother and Prim so we can go home together. They look confused as to why we didn't come earlier. "If you wondering why we were late, we know the boy tribute." Katniss explains. I shudder. Terrin's a tribute. Mother nods and we walk home. Katniss looks like a ghost, and I'm sure that I do, too.

Prim seems much happier when we get home. She's survived her first reaping, I'll bet she feels great. Katniss and I collapse on the couch. She looks at me. "I guess I'm a leader now." she says. I laugh weakly. "Yes, you are. You'll be an amazing leader." I say then kiss her lightly. She shakes her head. "I'll suck at it, and you know it." she insists. "Oh, Katniss," I begin. "You have no idea. The effect you can have."

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**A/N: Oh no! Poor Terrin! Will Katniss be a good leader? Will the rebellion thrive? Thank you for reading, and please review!**


	12. Interviews

**A/N: It's official, Terrin wil be battling it out in the Hunger Games. Read to find out what happens to him! Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games trilogy or any of the characters. I do own Terrin Vanders, Thenna Vanders, Aggie, and Reed.**

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These past few days have been grueling to suffer through. We had to watch the tribute parade on television a few days ago. This year they _finally_ had some sense. Terrin and Kyli were fully dressed. Not just that, they were on fire. Kyli hasn't really made an impression, but Terrin has. He was smiling, waving, winking, the whole charm package. They're calling him 'the boy on fire'.

Yesterday, we found out his training score is nine, pretty good for a non-career. I wonder how he got it. Kyli got a four. The poor girl doesn't stand a chance. I feel sorry for her, but there can only be one winner, and I'm sure that that winner will be Terrin.

Today is the our first formal meeting since Terrin got reaped. It's also the day of the interviews. I know that Katniss will be a great leader, but she doubts it. She's always doubting her abilities. She's got passion, though. And a leader needs passion for what they're working toward. She'll be great.

I doubt that Thenna's handling all this very well. Aggie told me that Terrin is one of her only family memebers. Their father walked out on them and their mother just seems to care more about alcohol than her own kids. Terrin is not just Thenna's brother, but he's also her father figure, like I am for Prim. Thenna must feel terrible. I only hope that we can ease her pain some by acting as her family.

Katniss and I are walking to the normal meeting spot in the woods. I can tell she's nervous about having to take Terrin's place. He left some big shoes to fill. I'd be _terrified _if it were me.

Like usual, we're the last ones there. Everyone has a very serious expression on, just waiting for Katniss to start speaking. She looks at me with wide eyes as she makes her way up to the front. Katniss opens her mouth hesitantly. "I know that many of you think that all hope is lost because Terrin isn't currently with us. But we can't give up. We need to make Terrin proud. He's strong, he's smart, he's clever, the definition of a Hunger Games winner. He'll come home to us. We know it, too. Now, let's all meet up in the square tonight to watch Terrin's interview. He's going to make a big impression. Now since that's out of the way, does anyone have news?"

We all look around at each other, waiting for someone to speak up. It looks like no one is going to raise their hand, until I see someone slowly raise one. It's Reed. "What do you want to tell us, Reed?" Katniss asks gently, like she's talking to a child. He looks down slightly. I think he's scared. "I heard my uncle talking. District 12 is at risk of declaring rebellion. The mayor is very seriously considering it." he tells us. Katniss's eyes bug out, along with eveyone else's. We're the outer-most district. If we rebel, then we could be blown off the map, made an example of. Just like District 13. We're in some deep trouble if the mayor take that risk.

Katniss nods and presses on. "We need to enlist more people if we want this to become more successful. Does anyone have some ideas for some people who you think might be a good contender?" Gale's hand shoots up immediately. I have a feeling I know who he wants to nominate. "Yes, Gale?" she asks. "I would like to help enlist Madge Undersee." Everyone gasps. Yep, I was right. "The mayor's daughter?" Aggie asks timidly. Gale smiles. "Yes, the mayor's daughter. She hates the games and eveything about it, just like us. She has connections. She could be a valuable member for us." He does make a point.

Katniss sighs. "Okay, Gale, bring her to the next meeting, but blindfold her on the way here and the way back so she doesn't know how to get here, just in case she doesn't make the cut. Deal?" Gale nods. "Deal."

Thenna's hand shoots out to point at Katniss. "What's that?" she asks. Katniss looks down. I see what Thenna was pointing to. The mockingjay pin. "A mockingjay, something that proves the Capitol if full of screw-ups." Gale jokes. "It's a symbol of rebellion, too." Reed adds. "I guess that makes sense." I say. It's like shoving the bird in the Capitol's face saying, 'Ha! You made a mistake!'. Aggie snaps her fingers. "We'll call you our mockingjay!" she says excitedly. I laugh. "Good one, Aggie!" I exclaim, then ruffle her hair. She jokingly sticks her tounge out at me. Everybody laughs, including Katniss. "Mockingjay it is!" Katniss announces. "Just don't expect me to sprout wings!"

* * *

Katniss and I make our way to the square. I keep my eyes sharp, trying to find Gale and everyone else. I feel someone tap me on the back. When I spin around to face the person, I'm greeted by Aggie's smiling face. "Peeta! Katniss! Good to see you again." I see Reed, Thenna and Gale behind her. We all gather in a group immediately, like a bubble to keep us together. It amazes me how close we all are. We haven't known each other for a long time, but we united for a cause, and that's all that matters.

The screen turns on. This is it. We're going to see Terrin trying to charm his way into the hearts of Capitol sponsers. As soon as the screen lights up, I see Ceaser Flickerman in a blue suit, wig and skin. It freaks me out, to be honest. It's creepy. I would never surgically modify myself like that. "Welcome, welcome!" he exclaims. I feel sick already. "Now for our first tribute. From Disrtict 1: Glimmer!" I pretty much zone out, only looking at who could be a threat to Terrin.

The boy from District 2, Cato, is a giant. Terrin's going to have to do a lot of thinking to get his way out of that one. The boy from District 11, Thresh, is huge, too. He, however, looks like he has no interest in contact with the other players for killing or alliances. My heart aches when I see the little girl from District 11, Rue. She has to be twelve years-old, like Prim and Aggie. I would hate to see her die... I push the thought out of my head. Terrin has to win.

Kyli does better than expected. She puts up a sweet girl front, trying to act innocent and kind. She might be like that in real life, but there's no way of knowing.

When they finally get to Terrin, I'm blown away. He has on a black suit with flame accents on it, showing the world why they call him the boy on fire. Ceaser looks impressed. Terrin sits down on the chair smiling, probably struggling to keep his contempt for these people under control. He's still smiling when Ceaser calms the audience down.

"So, Terrin, how are you finding the Capitol so far?" he asks. Terrin plasters a big fake smile on his face when he answers. "The housing and scenery by far are my favorite things. It's beautiful here!" he exclaims. Thenna and I exchange looks. We know that he's having trouble not strangling Ceaser. "Excellent! Now, tell me Terrin, do you have anyone waiting for you to come home?" Ceaser asks. Terrin's mask of happiness changes to adoration for whoever he's thinking about. "Well, my little sister, Thenna, is waiting for me. She's my pride and joy and I swear that I'll come home for her." Terrin answers sincerely. Ceaser doesn't look placated. "Now c'mon, you're a handsome young fellow, there must be some girl who's caught your eye!" he pushes.

Terrin looks nervous. If you know him, you'd know that he must be hiding something. "W-Well.." he stutters, "There is one girl... but she's never noticed me.. I keep to myself a lot." Ceaser looks pleased with his answer. "Well, Terrin, you already plan to go home for your sister, so why not sweep her off her feet when you get back? No one can resist a victor." Ceaser suggests. Terrin looks down sadly. I get a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach, like something isn't right. "Well, I don't think that will work, Ceaser." he says sadly. "Why ever not?" Terrin sighs. "Because she's the female tribute."

"Oh dear god, we're screwed." Katniss whispers next to me. Of course we are.

The crowd in the Capitol and the crowd in District 12 both gasp. I exchange looks with eveyone in the group. All but Thenna look surprised. Of course she knew. Should she have warned us? Will Terrin give up his life for Kyli? "Well, that's unfortunate." Ceaser says. Terrin nods sadly. The buzzer goes off. Both Ceaser and Terrin stand up. Ceaser takes Terrin's hand and raises it up for the audience. "Terrin Vanders, ladies and gentlemen!" With that, Terrin walks away.

Everyone is left stunned. A tribute loving another tribute is unthinkable. It's never happened before, they just kill each other, so why bother? What if I were in the arena with Katniss? I shudder. Now I know a litttle bit of what Terrin must feel.

Thenna tries to help our confusion. "Okay, I understand you all are shocked, but hear me out," she begins. "Terrin has loved her for a long time. Why, he won't tell me, but he does. This isn't some ploy for sponsers. I know I should have told you, but I was so caught up in worrying about Terrin that it must have slipped my mind. I'm sorry. I'm such a moron sometimes!" Aggie captures her in a hug. "It's okay, Thenna. We understand, don't we, guys?" We all nod and join the hug. We must look like idiots, hugging each other in the square right after the interviews ended, but I don't mind. These guys are like my family.

I know that Terrin won't be killing Kyli, but what will he do if she dies? I remember what Mother did after Dad died. It was like she wasn't even there, like she went with him. But Terrin's strong. He can get through it. Besides, I doubt that Kyli will make it to the final two. She only got a four in training, sponsers aren't exactly lining up to give money to her mentor.

We break apart with the intent to go our seperate ways. Suddenly, a Peacekeeper approaches us. My reaction is to freeze. Apparently, eveyone else had the same idea. I see Reed with his hand frozen on his face. If I wasn't so scared, I would laugh. The Peacekeeper stops right in front of us. "I'm looking for Thenna Vanders, Aggie Dooley, Reed Apoly, Peeta Mellark, and Katniss Everdeen. Are you them?" We all nod nervously, except for Reed, who just trembles in fear. "Come with me, please." We comply. As we walk, I grab Katniss's hand. She looks at me and tells me silently with her eyes, '_I won't tell them anything if you don't_.' I nod. She goes back to looking straight ahead.

The Peacekeeper brings us to the Justice building. When inside we stand close together, like a united front. We're all willing to die for this rebellion, which very well may happen today. The Peacekeeper clears his throat and speaks, "Well, we brought you here for something very important. In all my years as a Peacekeeper, I've never seen this happen before." he tells us, obviously going to continue.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't scared out of my mind, but I'm not telling them anything. We'd need a miracle to save us. I can only hope that Terrin comes home and starts a new group once we are 'disposed of'.

Hope for the best, expect the worst.

* * *

**A/N: The Peacekeepers found out! Or did they..? Anyway, did anyone get my reference at the end? 'Twelve Chairs', anyone? I'm a HUGE Mel Brooks/Gene Wilder fan, so I also put a little 'History of the World Part 1' in Katniss's speech when she wanted to join the rebel group. Anyway, sorry it took so long to update, but I was working on a one-shot, and I had other things to do. IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!: I WILL NOT BE ABLE TO UPDATE JULY 21st-28th.**


	13. Games: Day 1

**A/N: Thank you all for waiting for this chapter. Sorry for the clify-ending. Builds the suspense! Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games trilogy or the characters. Shorter chapter today. Sorry, I'm just really busy preparing for my vacation.**

* * *

This moment was going to come eventually, it's just hard to prepare for. Knowing that you could be caught and killed at any moment is much different than actually being caught. I'm doing my best to keep my cool, but inside I feel like exploding. How did they find out?

The Peacekeeper looks around to see if anyone else is here. I prepare myself to be beaten, thrown in a cell, something, but it never comes. He takes a step towards us and shoves something in my hand. Wait, so we're not in trouble?

I look at the piece of paper.

_District 7 followed District 8._

_District 12 will come after._

_Bombing will ensue._

_Find somewhere to run after Games end._

_District 13 lives._

_Destroy note._

I pass the note around. Everyone looks as shocked as me. District 13 is alive and well. They must be working on the rebellion, too. We need to run after the games end. Where do we go? As soon as I ask myself that question I know the answer.

District 13.

Thenna is the last to get the note. She eats it, just like Katniss did that time with Gale. I look at the Peacekeeper, who I have no idea the identity of. "Thank you." I say. He nods and gestures for us to leave. We all shuffle out thankfully. We head to the woods, the only safe place we know in this god forsaken country. We get far in before we dare to speak about the note we saw today. As soon as we reach our meeting place, I wheel around to face everyone.

"We need to talk about this now." I say. "Before it's too late." Gale adds. I nod and gesture for Katniss to step up. She's our new leader, I wouldn't be able to say anything that can't already be said. Katniss looks nervous, but determined. "You all saw the note. We have to run after Terrin gets home. It will be much riskier to run with a victor, but it's worth it. He won't go on the Victory tour for another few months, so we have that amount of time to find somewher safe. I think we all know that the safest place is District 13. I've seen a map with District 13 on it. If I'm correct, it should take about, I'd say, one week to get there, which means a lot of nonstop walking and sleeping in trees. Now for the debate on whether or not to evacuate as many people as we can before the bombings. Raise your hand if you want to evacuate as many people as you can before hand." Mine and Aggie's hands shoot up. No one else.

"Are you guys kidding? We're dealing with innocent people's lives here. You want to leave people to die? What about our _families_? Gale, you're seriously going to leave your own family behind?" I yell. I don't see how we could just let people die. Gale speaks up, "I have a suggestion. We pick a select few to bring with us. Our families and some friends, but if we bring too many people, it could slow us down." I hesitate. Only a few? What will become of the rest? Can they get out by themselves? Wait, they don't know about District 13. I guess I'll have to compromise. "Fine, I agree." Gale smiles. "What about you, Aggie?" he asks. She nods. I'm glad we're all on the same page.

Katniss nods. "So we've made up our minds? Good. Just know this one thing; you can _never_ turn back now. Now we're in this. Forever. Be prepared to face all of your fears. Meeting over." We say our goodbyes and go home. Halfway there, I remember what tomorrow is. The first day of the games. We have to sit back and watch Terrin fight for his life. I think I'm gonna be sick. What kind of sick, inhumane game have we been watching for 74 years? It's never hit so close to home for me. Now my friend is in them. This is just too much to take in, even if the reaping was a while ago. This should be a long few weeks.

The games start at noon today. I'm so nervous and scared for Terrin. I feel absolutely sick. I stay close to Katniss to ease my mind. We're sitting on the couch about half an hour before the games are to start. I have my arm around her and she has her head on my shoulder. We're silent. "Peeta, do you really think Terrin will make it?" she asks. "I don't think it, I know he'll make it." I insist. She looks convinced. I kiss her for what feels like the first time in a long time. We go back to silence.

"Peeta! Time to go watch the games!" Prim calls. I sigh. "Okay, little duck. We'll go in a bit." She nods and goes to change. Katniss pats my arm. "The moment we've been waiting for. Well, at least the moment we've been _forced_ to wait for." I laugh weakly and help her up. Mother and Prim come out and we all walk to the square. As soon as we get there, Thenna and Aggie pounce on us. "I can't believe it! He could die today! He coud DIE!" Thenna cries while holding onto Katniss. Katniss is peting her hair in a futile attempt to calm her down. Aggie is clinging onto me like she could be sucked into a black hole if she lets go. Reed is following close behind. Prim and Mother look confused.

"Oh, uh, Prim, Mother, this is Aggie," I point to Aggie, "This is Thenna," I point to Thenna, "And this is Reed." I point to Reed. Prim excitedly shakes all of their hands. Mother just politely nods. Prim's always been the people person in this family. Thenna, Aggie and Reed look like they're fond of her already. Prim and Aggie start chatting away like they don't have a care in the world. I wish they could stay these innocent kids forever.

The screen turns on. I grab both Katniss's and Prim's hands and wait for it to begin. I usually cover Prim's eyes when things get to be too bloody, but I realize that I can't shield her from this anymore.

The tributes appear on the screen, surrounded by woods. Score one for Terrin, he knows the woods by now. The countdown starts. 30...29...28..27...26...25...24... ...5...4...3...2...1. Everyone makes a run for it. The careers and some of the other tributes run towards the cornucopia and the bloodbath begins. I see Terrin grab a backpack on the outer edge and grabs Kyli's wrist before diving into the forest. My heart pounds when Cato spots them and throws a sword. At Kyli's head. Luckily, Terrin puts his backpack in front of Kyli, saving her and getting a sword to use later. They start sprinting through the woods like maniacs to find water or shelter.

The screen changes to the cornucopia. Cato is in the middle of stabbing the boy from 4 in the heart. If he wasn't so tiny, he would've been a career. Prim buries her head in my chest. I wish she didn't have to watch this. Clove throws a knife at the boy from 6, which goes right into his head, killing him instantly. Glimmer and Marvel are taking turns slashing the girl from 3, who won't stop thrasing around. I'm happy that Rue got out of the bloodbath unharmed. She climbed a tree and ate some berries she found. She's a resourceful little girl. The screen thankfully turns back to Terrin and Kyli. They've taken shelter in a cave. He has his arms wrapped around her while they try to get warmer. "How will we do this, Terrin? There can only be one winner." Terrin puts his face in her hair. "We'll find a way, Kyli. I swear it. I love you." "I love you, too." "We'll go collect some food tomorrow, okay?" Terrin suggests. Kyli nods. They hold each other close and the sreen fades to black.

I hear Thenna let out a breath she was holding. I feel so greatful to have Katniss and not have to be put in the same situation Terrin's in. I hug Katniss to me and kiss her head. She squeezes me tightly. She must be thinking the same thing. Thenna looks estatic that Terrin is alive. Reed is talking to Mother, and Aggie and Prim are whispering about what they just saw. Thenna hugs me after Katniss lets go of me. "He lived! I knew he could do it!" she says. I pat her back and let her go. Aggie and Reed are hugged senseless by an ectatic Thenna.

We go our seperate ways and head home. I feel confident after seeing that. I know that Terrin can make it. But one thing is still haunting me. What will happen to Kyli?

* * *

**A/N: Sorry the first day of the games were short, but when you think about it, the only thing that happens on the first day is the bloodbath.**


	14. AUTHOR'S NOTE

**A/N: Sorry I haven't updated in a while, I've been on vacation without my laptop. The next chapter should be up later today or tomorrow. I promise! I love you guys!**


	15. Rue

**A/N: Thank you for your patience with this chapter. I hated that I couldn't update all week. Well, I'm back!**

* * *

Today is another day of the games. Nothing much has happened since day one. The girl from 8, the girl from 4 and Glimmer all died after day one. The girl from 8 started a fire, which attracted the attention of the careers, who promptley stabbed her through the stomach. The death was far from quick and painless. It lasted for so long that Cato had to send someone back to finnish her off. Personally, I think he was starting to feel bad about her suffering that he caused. So the boy from 1 stabbed her again, ending her life.

The careers parked themselves under a tree that Rue was in. They didn't notice her at first, but when she almost slipped, they saw her. After a failed attempt to throw weapons at her, Cato tried climbing the tree, but his weight was too much. The last branch he caught before he fell had a tracker jacker nest on it. The nest fell and the swarm attacked. Cato, Clove and the boy from 1 ran to the lake, the smart idea. The girl from 4 and Glimmer wern't as smart. They tried fending the tracker jackers off with their weapons, but it was too late. They were attacked and mutalated by the brutal things. Rue was unharmed as she watched the whole scene unfold in front of her. I feel an odd attachment to this little girl who I do not know. Maybe she reminds me of Prim. I don't know why, but I know that I'll be sad to see her go.

Terrin and Kyli are still hiding out in the cave, with occasional outings to find food. Terrin collected some nightlock berries yesterday, unaware that they were deadly. My heart dropped when I saw that. I thought for sure that he would eat it and die. Kyli suddenly smacked the berries out of his hands. "Don't eat those, Terrin! They're poisnous! You'll be dead in a minute!" she screamed. Terrin shook his head. "I'm so sorry, I didn't know. I didn't mean to put us in danger, Kyli." he said quietly. She just buried her face in his chest and hugged him around his waist. I feel a little suspicious. Why does a merchant girl like Kyli know about nightlock? Maybe she isn't as innocent as she claims...

Katniss shakes me out of my thoughts. "Peeta, time for the meeting and Madge's initiation." she says. I sigh and get up with her. I casually put my arm around her waist as we walk to the fence. "Peeta, do you ever think about...well...our future?" she asks as we walk to the normal meeting spot. This stops me dead in my tracks. A future. A future with Katniss. There was a time when I didn't know if I would live to see the next week. Those days are far gone, now. I always told myself that I would never get married. Marriage leads to kids, kids who would no doubt have their names in the reaping ball multiple times. But things have changed. I've fallen in love. Why did I let myself fall in love? I would be much better off not having marriage and kids to worry about. I feel weak, knowing that I let one person have this much influence over my life. As soon as my blue eyes meet Katniss's gray ones, guilt washes over me for thinking such things. I can't help loving her. "I haven't really thought about it. Have you?" She shrugs. "Sometimes, but I always remind myself that with the world we live in, I'm much better off not thinking about it." Her voice lowers, "And the way things are going now, we may not live to see what could happen."

We walk the rest of the way in silence, not knowing what to say to each other. How do you resume a normal conversation after what we just talked about? And the scary part is, now _I'm_ thinking about our future together. If the world changed, I would marry her in a second. I love children, so that would be a blessing, too. But we just can't do that right now. It's not the safe or responsible thing to do.

Gale is the one person missing when we reach the meeting spot. He's probably trying to safely maneuver Madge through the woods while she's wearing a blindfold as we speak. Katniss makes her way to the front. "We have a new member joining today! Everyone excited?" she asks. She only gets murmers in response. No one is too keen on letting the mayor's daughter join a group of rebels. Katniss scowls. "She won't rat us out. If you take the time to get to know her, you'll realize what a good person she is. Now be positive, gosh darnit! Do you honestly think Gale would love her if she wasn't a great person?" That is a good point. I have to admit that I wasn't very happy about it at first, but I can't say anything bad about my best friend's girlfriend. "I bet she's real nice." Aggie adds. I surpress a chuckle. Aggie; always seeing the best in people.

"Hello, everyone!" I turn to see Gale leading a blindfolded Madge into the clearing. She has her hands out in front of her to prevent running into something. Gale stops her and slides her blindfold off. Her eyes widen as soon as they land on Katniss. She gasps in surprise. "Katniss? I didn't know that you were in the group." Katniss nods stiffly. Madge just shrugs and sits down. Katniss motions for everyone to stand and introduce themselves. Well, everyone except her and Gale. The whole time, I just think about what her speech will be like. With a mayor as a father, she has to have some angst in her. I'd be pretty angry if my father supported such a horrendous regime. I suddenly feel an overwhelming sadness come over me. I miss my own father so much. And I never even got to meet Mr. Hawthorne. Why did they have to leave us so soon? It's not _fair_.

Madge gets up to make her speech. She looks pretty confident. She clears her throat and begins, "My whole life has been planned for me, not by me. I'm supossed to sit there and keep my mouth shut as my father reads the treaty of treason before the reaping. Everyone assumes that I'm a Capitol loyalist. But I'm not. I don't believe in the way we are being run. But does that alone make me a rebel? No. I have never taken action because I've always been too afraid. But I've realized that being afraid is just an excuse I use to not join in on the rebellion. I left it up to everyone else that disagreed with the Capitol to do something about it. Of course, I never thought that anyone would succeed, but I just left it alone." She sighs. "And then I met Gale." Gale smiles and looks down. "I had found something worth fighting for. The Capitol seperates our classes, trying to make us look down on the other. That was the straw that broke the camel's back. I'm done sitting by while children get slaughtered. I'm done turning the other way when merchants taunt people from the Seam. I plan on doing something about it." Everyone that had doubts about her this morning gets up and starts clapping. I see why Gale loves her so much. She's an amazing person.

Katniss shakes her hand. "You're in, Madge." Madge smiles and thanks her before sitting down with Gale. Katniss takes a few minutes to explain the situation with Terrin and the bombing. Madge nods in understanding. "Speaking of Terrin, don't the games start soon?" I ask. Everyone sits straight up when they realize that it's time to get to the square. "We shouldn't watch it together, though. We don't want to make things worse than they already are." Thenna suggests. Katniss agrees with her and everyone leaves for the square except for Katniss and I.

Once everyone leaves, I pull her into an embrace. "We've been so busy with this rebellion that I feel like I don't get anytime alone with you." I say quietly and kiss her cheek. She scowls. "I know, but at least we're working towards something important. It's worth it." I hug her tighter. I think back to what she asked me today, about our future together. Katniss wouldn't seem like the ideal wife for most men. Defiant, firey and unwilling to be submissive. But to me, she's absolutely perfect. I'd love for her to be my wife and the mother of my children in the future. "Katniss, I want to tell you something." I blurt out. She looks at me, waiting for me to continue. I take a deep breath. "It would be an absolute blessing for you to become my wife one day." She startes at me in shock. I think I've overstepped until she kisses me eagerly. I kiss back with every ounce of passion I can muster. We break apart for air. "I would be honored to be your wife one day, but don't expect me to act like a boring old housewife." I laugh and pull her as close as I can. "I wouldn't expect you to be anything except the way you are now. I love you, Katniss." I feel her smile against my chest. "I love you, too."

* * *

Katniss, Mother, Prim, and I get to the square a few minutes before the games start. This will be the first time that we don't meet up with Thenna, Reed, Aggie, and Gale, but we don't want to arouse suspicion. It may be unnecessry, but better safe than sorry. The screen turns on and I brace myself for what I'm about to see. Terrin and Kyli appear on the screen first. They're sitting in each other's arms in the cave, relaxing for the first time since the games started. He's playing with her hair while she lays on him. I feel happy for them, that they get to have this moment, but I also feel sorry for them. They have to go through what no couple should.

A cannon booms. Terrin jumps up in alarm, holding his knife. He slowly creeps out of the cave with Kyli following. The pouch they left out holding the nightlock has been opened. Whoever ate it is the person who's cannon sounded. Terrin smirks, as if he's hiding some big secret. It occurs to me that he might have left the nightlock out as a trap to eliminate another tribute. A shiver runs down my spine thinking about it. I refocuse myself. There can only be one winner, right?

They travel a while and stumble upon the body of the girl from 5. Even though it wasn't a violent death, her body still looks...dead. She doesn't look like she could be sleeping like most people suggest. She looks like a long dead corpse, pale and much too still. It makes me sick. Terrin takes Kyli's hand and leads her away from the girl's lifeless body. They collapse at a rock.

"How many more?" she asks. He thinks. "Hmm...well, we still have Cato, Thresh, Rue, the boy from 1, and Clove to deal with. Rue's a different case, though. I refuse to kill a twelve year-old." Kyli nods in agreement. She has a look on her face that I can't quite decifer. I stare hard before I come up with the emotion she's feeling. _Guilt_. "Terrin, there's something I haven't told you." He leans in to hear her better. She sighs. "I...well, um, I...uh...I'm not, um...weak. I mean I can...I know how to use a...um a spear and a...um, an axe." she stutters. Terrin looks shocked. So that's her secret. She's been lying about her abilities. She wanted to be pegged as weak so she wouldn't be a target. Terrin goes from looking shocked to looking happy. "That's great! You know how to defend yourself in case we get into trouble with Cato or Clove." Kyli looks relieved that Terrin didn't flip out on her. They hug each other happily.

A blood curdling scream breaks them apart. My heart start pounding in my ears. Terrin's first reaction is to run to the source of the noise. Kyli follows him. They sprint through the forest, trying to locate the source of the noise. "Help! Someone, please! HELP!" the person continues. Terrin and Kyli's speed picks up. Now they're running like maniacs. They finally reach the source of the noise. It's Rue, covered in a net. "Help me!" she screams. Kyli takes Terrin's knife and starts to cut the rope. When she's done, Rue untangles herself from it. Just in time for a spear to enter her body.

I let out a small cry. My hand reaches for Prim, who I crush to me. I stroke her hair to remind myself that she's here. She's safe, she didn't get killed like little Rue.

Terrin throws his other knife at the culprit, the boy from 1. He falls to the ground, dead. Terrin and Kyli are by Rue's side in seconds. The wound will be the end of her, but she's still alive for now. Kyli is on one side of Rue with her hand on Rue's shoulder. Terrin is on the other side with his hand on her arm. "Th-thank you for tr-trying." Rue whispers weakly. Terrin takes her hand in his. "It was the right thing to do. You remind me of my little sister." he admits. Kyli has tears streaming down her cheeks. My own tears are threatening to fall, but I have to be strong for Prim. And myself.

"Do you two...love each other?" Rue asks. Kyli and Terrin both nod. Rue smiles slightly. "Show everyone what true love is capable of." Kyli and Terrin grab Rue's hands as she leaves from this world. The cannon sounds. It has to be the saddest sound I've ever heard. My heart drops in my chest. Terrin and Kyli look devestated. Instead of leaving her for the hovercraft, they gather some flowers nearby and place it on Rue's lifeless body. They give the three-finger salute from our District, which is usually used at funerals. With that, the screen fades to black.

I come back to my senses and realize that I'm still holding onto Prim like she's my life line. Katniss is on the other side of me, standing strong with a stony expression on her face. The entire crowd is silent, moved by Rue's death. Katniss gently places her hand on my arm. "We should leave now." she says with a hard voice. She's trying to mask her feelings, but I can see right through it. We walk home, Prim never leaving my side. I'm scared of what would happen if she did. When we get home, I make sure to put Prim to bed. I tuck her in tightly and kiss her forehead. "Goodnight, little duck." I tell her. "Goodnight, Peeta. I love you." I smile. "I love you, too." Katniss comes into the room. "Hey, Prim!" Prim's face lights up when she sees Katniss. "Hey, Katniss!" Katniss sits beside her bed. "Now I want you to go to sleep and think of good things. Think of Lady and Buttercup, think of the meadow, okay?" Prim nods. "Good. Goodnight, Prim." Katniss hugs Prim and we leave for the living room.

I've been staying in the living room with Katniss for a few weeks now. Seeing Terrin in the games gives us nightmares, something I had to deal with anyway. We like to be there to comfort each other. "You're so good with Prim." I tell her. She looks down. "I've always wanted a little sibling." she mumbles. "Well, you're a natural." She smiles. I love her smile. "I love you so much, you know that?" She rolls her eyes. "Yes, Peeta. And I love you too. Never forget that." I pull her to me and kiss her passionately, trying to pour all my love into it. She reciprocates with just as much passion. I feel light-headed and unexplainably happy when I kiss her. We pull away, both placated. "Goodnight, love." I say. We lay down in our usual position, her laying on my chest and my arms wrapped around her. I drift off to sleep thinking about Rue.

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**A/N: Ta da! So, I have a deliema. I don't know if I should keep or kill Kyli. What do you think? Also, how do make Katniss and Peeta numero uno on Snow's hitlist instead of Terrin? And how do I put Katniss and Peeta through emotional trauma without them being in the games? Do YOU guys have any suggestions? Review or PM me a suggestion.**


	16. A Call From the Capitol

**A/N: Well, because you guys didn't give me any advice on Kyli or Snow's contempt for Katniss and Peeta like I asked (Cough, cough, *thanks a lot* cough, cough), I'll have to find a way myself, but I can't guarantee that you'll like it. If you still want to give me suggestions, look at the bottom of chapter 15 for what I'm asking you give me a suggestion with. Please, please, PLEASE REVIEW! Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games or any of the characters. I do own Terrin Vanders, Thenna Vanders, Kyli Winston, Aggie Dooley, and Reed Apoly. **

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And then there were three. Terrin, Kyli and Cato. I still have no idea how this will go down. Terrin won't be killing Kyli and Kyli won't be killing Terrin. Cato's death can only buy them so much time before one of them has to be killed and a winner announced.

Thresh killed Clove to avenge Rue, even though it was the boy from 1 who did that. I guess getting back at one of the only living careers is the next best thing. Clove started screaming for Cato when she saw the rock in Thresh's hand. But that wouldn't save her.

Cato was furious. He tracked Thresh down during a storm and overpowered him, something he had to be insane to do. Thresh was bigger than him, but in that moment, Cato's mind was so far gone that he had no concept of pain. It's like he had super human strength. It was hard to watch them battle it out like that.

As I sit on a stump during one of our meetings, I can see the terror clearly written on everybody's faces. We know what today is. Today is the finale. As usual, Katniss is the one concealing her feelings, with a mask of calmness on her face. "Being the last day of the games, we only need to discus one thing. We need to prepare to run." It's the moment I've been waiting for since Dad died. A chance to run. A chance to abandon this cruel place in favor of a better life. This is not at all how I imagined it happening.

"We have a problem, though. We can't _all_ travel together." Katniss says. We all look at each other, confused. Why can't we stay together? Katniss senses this confusion. "Think about it. All of us, plus our families, plus a select few friends. We'd be in much better shape just traveling in separate groups." She makes a point, but there is a flaw to the plan. "How will we decide groups? And isn't the group carrying Terrin at a higher risk than the rest? We can't just dump a select few of us with that responsibility." I explain. Katniss scowls at me like I've ruined her plan. "That's just a risk we have to take, Peeta. Now, who here is willing to carry Terrin in their group?" Thenna raises her hand immediately. He's her brother, of course she wants to be the one who has him in her group.

Thenna looks at the rest of us, bewildered. "Are you guys joking or something?" she asks angrily. I'm quick to reassure her. "Calm down, Thenna. We're not raising our hands because we have too many people to take with us. I have Katniss, my mother and my sister. My mother and sister are clueless when it comes to the woods, so that's something that will slow me down right there. Gale has his mother, Madge and his three siblings. I'm sure that you and Terrin could travel with Reed and Aggie." Thenna takes a deep breath in and out to calm her nerves. She gives me a shaky nod. I smile and pat her shoulder.

"Now, let's move on." I decide. Katniss continues, "So gather your groups as soon as Terrin is free to visit the woods. Bring some food and other necessities with you. I'll make a few fishing poles for each group that doesn't know how to hunt. Remember, you should only be in the woods for a little over a week at most if you use the route correctly. And may the odds-" "Be _ever_ in your favor!" Aggie finishes for her. Katniss nods. "Meeting adjourned."

We all stand up to leave. Katniss walks toward the house, while I'm heading to town to pick up something from the apothecary. I'm still scared to go into town after getting attacked, but I just have to get in and out quickly then I'm done. I walk past hurriedly and hope that people think I'm a merchant because of the way I look. I reach the apothecary's door when a Peacekeeper stops me. "Come with me, boy." he says. I tense up. I hope that it's like last time and I'm not in any trouble. "Yes, sir." I say stiffly. I dislike most authority, so calling them 'sir' is a hard thing to do. They don't deserve it. What have they done for us? Sit by and watch us starve to death?

He leads me to the Justice Building. When I get inside, another Peacekeeper is holding a phone. "Peeta Mellark? You have a call from Haymitch Abernathy in the Capitol."

I stand frozen in shock. I didn't even know that calling from the Capitol was allowed. He doesn't even know who I am. Unless Terrin told him about me. But that would mean Terrin told him about everything. Everything. Who trusts a drunken victor with this type of information?

"Um, hello?" I half-ask.

_"So, are you the Peeta Mellark I've heard about from the boy?"_ he asks gruffly.

"The one and only. What do you want?"

_"Someone's a little hostile. Look, all I need is for you to give Terrin some advice."_

"What kind of advice?"

_"Don't play stupid, boy. A way to get them both out. It's urgent."_

A way to get them both out. The answer is so simple. Katniss explained it to me when we got home from watching the games last time. Nightlock is the way out.

"Nightlock."

_"What?"_

"You heard me. Nightlock."

There's a long pause on the other end.

_"Suicide."_

"Well, let's just hope that they'll stop them before they actually do it, but yeah, suicide."

_"I'll just put 'use the nightlock' on the note I send him."_

"Sounds like a plan."

_"Oh, and kid?"_

"Yeah?"

_"...You've done good, boy."_

"Thanks, Haymitch. Just make sure he comes back to us."

_"Hey, I'm trying. Believe me, I am."_

"You better be. Did Terrin tell you everything?"

_"If you're talking about what I think you're talking about, which you are, then yes. I know."_

"Are you involved in it?"

_"Of course I am, boy. Everyone is."_

"What do you mean everyone?"

_"All the victors. Well, all but the ones from 1 and 2. You didn't hear this from me, okay kid?"_

"Okay. Bye."

I hang up the phone. The Peacekeepers are waiting for me at the door. I'm competent enough to leave by myself, thank you very much. These people really get on my nerves. "May I leave now?" I ask, trying to sound less annoyed than I am. They nod. I push my way through the door and go straight home, ignoring the apothecary completely. I'll just get it later. I need to get home and tell Katniss about this. It was her idea to begin with. I just repeated it.

"Where's the package?" Mother asks me as I walk in. "I got caught up in something else. I'll get it tomorrow." I promise. She doesn't ask why I was held up, thankfully. Prim comes skipping into the room from the backyard. She was probably milking Lady. "It's the last day of the games! We won't have to watch them anymore until next year!" she exclaims. Prim loves helping people and hates to see them get hurt. These past few weeks have been so hard for her to get through. It's hard for me to watch and not be able to do anything about her sorrow. We're all hurting right now, for different reasons. If only Mother and Prim knew why Katniss and I have woken up screaming almost all the nights this week. They'll know soon enough.

"Yes it is, little duck. Isn't that great?" She nods happily, blissfully ignorant to the fact that this will be the last games she ever sees. I kiss her forehead and sit on the couch with Katniss. She turns over to me in surprise.

"You're hiding something." Gale isn't the only one who reads me like a book. "What happened to us after the end of the first day of the games?" She thinks for a while before her eyes go wide. "What did they want?" she asks, trying to mask her concern. I put my hand on her shoulder. "I had a call from Abernathy for some advice to give Terrin." I tell her calmly. "What did you tell them?" I look around to see if Mother and Prim are listening. Prim isn't in the house, which means that she's in the backyard, and Mother is busy patching up some worn out clothes. "Remember what you told me could get them both out?" Her expression changes to one of pure happiness. "Bravo, Peeta. It looks like we'll be bringing another person along for the ride." she says deviously. I smile with her.

I know that without Kyli, Terrin is nothing. When the person you're in love with dies, you end up like Mother. Some are strong like Hazelle Hawthorne, but others aren't. Even if you are strong, it must be a hard thing to live with. Even Hazelle has her moments when she cries for her dead husband. Mother may be 'back' per-say, but she's still very frail and she rarely smiles. When someone you love dies, you never 'get over it'. You just learn to live with it.

"Time to go and see Cato die." Katniss says bluntly. "Well put." I joke. She laughs loudly and clearly. It's music to my ears, especially with everything that's going on now. It's nice to know that we can laugh at something, anything. I know we're working towards something great, but it can take its toll mentally. "I'll grab Prim before we leave." Katniss says. She leaves for the backyard to get her while I approach Mother. "It's time to leave, Mother." I tell her while she sews. She looks up like she forgot I was home. "Okay, I'll just put this down." She stops sewing just as Katniss comes in with Prim. "Let's get out of here. The sooner we do it, the sooner it's over." Katniss says. We head out to see the last day of the games in the square, hoping for the best.

* * *

The screen turns on in the square. The first thing that comes into focus is Terrin and Kyli leaving the cave where they have spent most of the games. "Are you sure we're making the best move, Terrin?" Kyli asks. "Yes, we are. These games have gone on long enough. We have to stop them one way or another. It's time to face Cato." Kyli and Terrin make their way closer to the cornucopia, Cato's undeniable hiding place unless he's on the hunt for Terrin and Kyli. They stop to rest on a rock near the cornucopia. "I'm so nervous." Kyli whispers. Terrin puts his hand on her shoulder reassuringly. "So am, Kyli. In fact, I'm terrified. I thought we could just ignore this moment, but it's here." Kyli nods nervously. They get closer together on the rock. Suddenly, the mockingjays all fly out of trees and give a warning cry. Kyli and Terrin are up in seconds, weapons in hand. They look around the arena suspiciously, trying to find what created a disturbance. The cause of it comes out when Cato leaps from the bushes, running like a mad man towards them. Terrin is quick in throwing a knife at him. Instead of killing him, it bounces off.

"He's got body armour!" Terrin screams. Cato's face is purple, meaning he must have been running the whole way. He zooms right past them, not even trying to kill them. Kyli starts following him with just as much desperation. Terrin's eyes go wide when he sees whatever isn't on the screen and he starts stumbling after both of them. The screen turns, and I gasp in unison with Katniss.

_Mutts._

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**A/N: Oooohhh, mutts! I hope you liked the chapter, please review! I love you guys!**


	17. A Broken Rule

**A/N: DUN DUN DUN! Mutts! What will happen to Terrin and Kyli? Thank you for waiting for this chapter and please review! I'm sorry it took me so long. I just got back to school and I found out I'm in two Gifted and Talented classes, so I have a lot of work to do, including writing for GT English. I love you guys!**

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I have to fight the urge to close my eyes until it's over. Terrin's my friend, I need to watch this, for him and for myself.

Terrin and Kyli are sprinting to the cornucopia, Kyli in front. A mutt is getting dangerously close to Terrin's leg as he nears the cornucopia. Kyli surprises me by taking out a knife and throwing it at the mutt. Cato has reached the cornucopia and is trying to climb it. It's obvious that the metal is burning his hand, but he tries anyway.

Kyli jumps on the cornucopia and extends her hand to Terrin. He takes it and she tries to pull him up with her. For a skinny merchant girl, she's pretty strong. Terrin helps the process along by placing his foot on a ridge in the cornucopia. The mutts are closing in on them and snapping at Terrin. "Hurry, before they get you!" Kyli screams. "I'm trying, pull me up a little!" Terrin yells back. Kyli desperately pulls him up with both arms. They collapse on the cornucopia together.

"What weapons do we have?" Kyli asks. "I have my knife and you have your axe. It should be enough." Terrin says. The screen pans over to Cato, who looks like he just caught his breath. I know where this is headed, and I don't like it.

Cato lunges at Terrin. Terrin is able to scramble away from him, but not without Kyli getting the brunt of Cato's attack. Cato knocks her down and grabs her arms so she can't get away. Terrin jumps on Cato and starts hitting and kicking him. Cato turns his attention back to Terrin, freeing Kyli. Kyli takes this opportunity to get up and back away. She reaches for the axe on her belt while Cato body slams Terrin onto the cornucopia. I can tell that Terrin is trying to get up, but the force of the body slam knocked the wind out of him. He's on the cornucopia, coughing violently while Cato aims blows to his back and stomach in a blind fit of anger. It's obvious to see that Cato hates Terrin so much that he dares to ignore a well-armed Kyli.

Kyli picks her axe up with a fierce, if not insane, look on her face. What happens next puts me in a state of horror yet also in a state of much-needed relief.

She plunges it into Cato's skull.

Cato drops to his knees when the axe touches his brain. He falls face down, dead instantly. Terrin is still clutching his stomach while Kyli is steps back dizzily, probably reeling from what she has just done. Terrin picks his head up weakly and looks at the scene in front of him. His eyes land on Kyli, who is staring back at Terrin nervously. For a few seconds, they don't exchange any words. They're just staring into each other's eyes. Suddenly, the dam breaks for Kyli. Tears are streaming from her eyes. She's sobbing inconsolably. The pain in Terrin's eyes caused by her weeping is visibly clear.

"I-It w-w-was the o-only th-thing I c-could do!" she sobs. "Please, T-Terrin, d-don't think l-less of me!" She falls down into a heap on the ground. Terrin drags himself over to her. "I know you only did it because you love me." he whispers hoarsely. It's a pitiful sight. Her wailing on the floor of the cornucopia and him gathering up his strength, trying to comfort her. It makes my heart ache, but only slightly. Katniss and I know how this will end.

When Terrin regains his strength and Kyli calms down, they slide off the cornucopia together. They both look distraught. They think they have to kill each other. If only they knew...

Terrin opens his arms in front of Kyli. "Do it." he says. Kyli looks down at her axe then back up at Terrin. She shakes her head quickly. "Come on, Kyli," he begs. "Only one of us can make it. I want it to be you-no, I _need _it to be you. It's my dying wish for you to go back home and be happy." Kyli's face darkens. "You really think I can do that without you?" she whispers grimly. Terrin looks down, ashamed. "I know that I couldn't..." he trails off and looks off into the distance. I feel like screaming, '_Focus, Terrin!_' until I see what he's looking at come into view.

It's a silver parachute. It lands right into Terrin's grasp. He opens it hesitantly. He pulls out a long knife with a note attached. Terrin drops the knife in disgust and reads the note. His face lights up after reading it. I can barely suppress my own smile. I knew that Terrin would be smart enough to know what the note means.

Terrin digs around in his pouch eagerly while Kyli looks at him with curiosity. He holds up the nightlock berries. Kyli gasps and places her hand over his. "NO! I won't let you, I-" Terrin places a finger to her lips. "Trust me." he whispers. He pours a few nightlock berries into Kyli's hand. She looks into his eyes with understanding written in her's. "Okay. On three?" she asks. He nods. They clasp their empty hands together.

"One."

"Two."

"...Three"

The berries have just passed their lips when the announcement comes over the loud-speaker. "Stop, STOP! Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you your victors, Kyli Winston and Terrin Vanders!" Terrin grabs her hand and drags her to the lake, where they clean their mouths out. Afterward, they collapse in each other's arms. "Did you swallow any?" Terrin asks breathlessly. Kyli shakes her head. "You?" Terrin shakes his head, too. They give each other a goofy smile that says what words cannot. That they made it, that they can go home, that they can be together. The hovercraft appears over head, dispatching a ladder.

Terrin wraps one arm around Kyli and takes the second ring of the latter, pulling her up with him. The latter goes back into the hovercraft, which flies away, ending their nightmare. The screen goes black.

Everyone in the square is cheering for our new victors. But Katniss and I, we don't cheer. We hold each other in relief. These people, they don't know the real Terrin, they just know the one who won the games. Few people have the pleasure of being his friend. I'm sure that Thenna, Reed, Aggie, and Gale are ecstatic right about now.

Katniss grabs my hand and Prim's as we exit the square to go home. _Home_. If only we got to stay. Mother trails behind us, a small smile on her face like every other District 12 resident. I wonder what it is like in District 2 right now. They are no doubt wondering how they lost to us. Being a career district, I doubt they care about their fallen tributes. The thought makes me sick. Even though Cato and Clove were vicious killers, the had family and friends. They had people that they loved. But those people only care about the fame and fortune the games give you.

I sigh as soon as I step through the door. After the interview and the recap, we're all leaving this place and never coming back. We will find District 13 if it kills us. Ha, I shouldn't tempt fate, should I?

Prim yawns before retiring to her room. No words are needed. We are all exhausted. "Night Prim, Mother." I offer weakly. "Night Peeta." Prim calls back. I smile then lay on the couch with Katniss. "We should tell them about it soon" she whispers. I look at her curiously. "About what?" I ask. She scowls. "What are we doing after Terrin gets home, Peeta?" I sigh. I can't believe I forgot. "Tomorrow, after the recap." I answer. She nods. "That's a good plan. It will give them time to adjust to the idea as well a preparing for it." she says. Without a word, I throw my arms around her waist and kiss her forehead. She snuggles into me and closes her eyes. We fall asleep together, protecting each other from the nightmares.

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**Katniss POV**

I wake suddenly. I didn't have a nightmare or hear a noise. I woke up because of my stupid emotions. When I look next to me, Peeta is still sound asleep, undisturbed by my stirring. I gently take his arm off me and place it on the spot where I was. I get up from the couch and wander outside. My mind is so jumbled with thoughts and emotions that I just need some time by myself to sort all of this out. I park myself under our tree in the meadow. As soon as I sit down, I rub my eyes in frustration. Why do I have to let these things get in the way?

I am far from the warm and fuzzy type. In fact, I have about as much charm as a dead slug. Peeta would disagree, but he really isn't objective here. I laugh to myself. It's funny what love does to you. I know I should find it terrifying, but it's strangely nice. I feel a tingle in my stomach when I think about it. A weird feeling I can't put into a coherent sentence. All I know is that I love it. It's not just being with Peeta, it's also about Prim, Terrin, Reed, Aggie, Thenna, Gale, Madge... I feel like I have an honest to god family now. It may sound corny, but I could really die happy. Now I may have to die. I am their mockingjay, their hope. I also know that I'm not an idiot. The berries were rebellious. They broke the number one rule; don't mess with the Capitol. I also know that Snow can hear what we say when we say it. We try to be cryptic, but it doesn't always. When I told Peeta about the berries, I was not at all cryptic. I just said it. Now not only am I in danger, I've put Peeta in harm's way, too.

For a moment, I consider doing away with myself. Peeta would be safe, Terrin would be safe, everybody would be safe. I shake the thought out of my head. I need to protect these people who I have dug into this hole. It's my duty now. I wonder if Peeta knows what we have done. Surely he does. It was rebellious and stupid, but needed. The guilt is eating away at me. Terrin could get killed, too. He committed the unthinkable act. He was the one who carried it out. Surely Snow has something waiting for him. The only thing I know for sure is that we are not safe, and I don't think we ever will be.


	18. Terrin Comes Home

**A/N: Again, sorry about the wait! Curse you, school work! My stupid keyboard is broken, too. On a less lighter note, I dedicate this chapter to Sydney, a girl from my school who died on September 25th after a long battle with cancer. If you want to show your support, there is a Facebook page called 'In HOPE Sydney Davies' and another called 'Pray for Sydney Davies' where you can express your condolences to her family and friends. You can also donate to the Sydney Davies Leukemia Foundation to help find a cure for cancer in children.**

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We told Prim and Mother about the plan a few days ago. Needless to say, they aren't happy. When Mother found out about it, I was sure she was going to try to lecture me about the dangerous activities I had gotten into. Instead, she solemnly nodded her head and waited for further news. Prim was devastated that she'd have to leave everyone behind to die, but I assured her that we would save as many people as we could. It's not entirely a lie. I plan on gathering a group of people and making for the woods, but when we get there, it's every man for himself. They want to get to District 13, they have to get there themselves. It may sound harsh, but I can't afford to be kind right now.

Katniss is calming Prim down while I take a walk in he woods with Gale. It's funny, he's the one person I made time for in the past, now it seems that I have none for him. It's sad, though. We're best friends, always will be. He's one of the reasons I'm alive right now. Without him, I would most likely have starved to death. As we pass the rock that used to be our meeting spot, I sigh at length. I guess it still is our meeting spot, but we haven't used it in a while. I sit on the rock to take a break and Gale follows suit. The memories of the fun times we had near this rock come flooding back into my mind. The one morning before my life changed forever is the most prominent. The morning before we went to the bakery and got attacked.

Gale turns to me. "What was your father like, Peeta?" he asks. My heart stops. I almost never talk about Dad. It's just too hard. Everytime I attempt to, I get depressed. I open my mouth slowly and try to form some words. "He... he was... well, he was like..." I can't continue. My thoughts speak louder, though. They tell me what a great man he was, how he always helped people less fortunate than him. He loved music, all types, and I could listen to him sing for hours on end. I finally know what to tell Gale. "When he sang, even the birds stopped to listen." That sums up the man my dad was.

"What about your dad, Gale?" I ask. Gale shrugs. "He wasn't perfect. He could be unfair sometimes. He disappointed me more times than I can count. But when I look back, I'm glad that he was in my life. I miss him." He looks away at the same time as me. It's a sensitive subject for both of us. I feel like we shouldn't have even brought it up. I clear my throat. "So, um, what are you and Madge planning to do when you get to 13?" I ask. "I'm not sure. Maybe we'll just get married, maybe we'll try to stay kids for as long as we can." he answers. "We've never been kids, Gale." I say bluntly. Gale nods sadly. "What about you and Katniss? Aggie and I have a bet going on how long we'll be in 13 before you two get hitched." I throw my head back laughing. "What did you bet?" I ask. Gale looks down. "Two weeks." "What about Aggie?" Gale laughs. "She bet two days."

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**Katniss POV**

I'm sitting at the table with Peeta's mom, waiting for him to come home so we can go see Terrin come back. She's sewing some clothes quietly, not talking to me. Not that I mind, in fact it's good that she's not. I really don't like talking to most people. She suddenly stops sewing and looks at me. It's an odd stare, almost like she zoned out. I force myself to ask her, "Do you need something from me, Mrs. Mellark?" She looks surprised that I asked. "No..." she trails off. I wiggle around in my chair uncomfortably. "I'm just gonna go... see how Prim is doing." I say quickly. I get up and leave before she has a chance to react.

Prim is packing her things in a small suitcase when I find her. "Hey, little duck!" I exclaim. She lifts her head up from her bag and smiles. I love Prim just as much as I love Peeta. She's my family now, and I need to protect her. When she smiles at me, it just proves that point further.

"Hey, Katniss. I'm just packing my things. Wanna help?" she asks innocently. "Of course I'll help." I reply. She gratefully hands me some clothes that I stuff in the bag for her. I grab another stack of patched up clothes and throw them in. "Katniss?" she asks. I look at her, waiting for her to continue. "Where are we going?" she asks, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. I sigh, finding it hard to explain to this innocent little girl the true danger of our situation. "I told you, Prim. We're going to a place far away where you'll never have to worry about the things going on around us." I settle on telling her. She looks down seemingly accepting this explanation.

"There's nothing to worry about, Prim. Peeta and I know what we're doing. We're going to protect you no matter what happens." Prim nods. "You really love my brother, don't you?" she asks. I stop packing and look at her. "Yes, Prim. I love Peeta." Prim smiles at me. "He loves you, too, you know." she says. I laugh. "Yes, I know that, Prim."

I put her brush and a small charm I assume her father got for her in the bag. "Will we be okay?" she whispers. I put my arm around her in a futile attempt to comfort her. "I hope so, Prim. I sure hope so."

* * *

**Peeta POV**

In what feels like two seconds, I'm standing in the square with my family, watching Terrin and Kyli wave at us as the first co-victors. I feel overly excited, like an eighteen year old never picked for the Hunger Games. We all have already established a plan. As soon as they are done with their responsibilities as victors, we'll make a beeline for them and drag them into the forest if we have to so we can tell them what happened and what's going to happen next. The little waving display goes on for what feels like hours before Terrin and Kyli are released from the podium and left to greet the ones they love. Thenna appears behind Katniss and I like a magician, grabbing our shoulders. "C'mon guys, we're getting Terrin back." We follow her without question.

Terrin is standing in the square, shaking some hands and greeting his adoring fans. As soon as he spots Thenna, he launches himself at her. She does the same and they meet in a crushing hug. It's a heartwarming sight, two siblings reunited after a long separation. "Terrin, I knew you could do it, I just knew it!" Thenna cries into his shirt. "I did it for you, Thenna. Everything I've ever done is for you." he whispers to her. Katniss grasps my hand while they embrace. Reed, Aggie, Gale, and Madge make their way over to us, and I notice that Kyli has migrated towards Terrin. Thenna detaches herself from Terrin. Katniss hugs him next.

"How ya doin', Terrin?" she asks jokingly. Terrin laughs. "I survived the Hunger Games. That has to count for something, right?" Aggie hugs him afterward, talking a mile a minute. "Woah, calm down Aggie." Terrin tells her. Once he lets go of Aggie, he looks at the rest of us. "Peeta, Reed, Gale! How are you doing, my friends? And what about this lovely lady?" he directs the question towards Madge. Madge blushes and introduces herself. "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you." Terrin insists. Katniss looks at all of them. "Woods, now. This means you too, Kyli." she demands. Everyone pays attention.

In the mass celebration, we are able to sneak out. Kyli looks confused by the time we reach the meeting spot, but she stays quiet. Katniss gets to the front before Terrin has a chance. "I'll get straight to the point, Terrin. District 13 exists, we're going to be bombed soon, and we are all running away to District 13 as soon as possible." Terrin stares at her, mouth wide open. "I, uh.." Katniss stops him. "Don't say anything, just meet us all here at night fall with whoever you want to bring. Be sure to pack food, water and some clothes. It's going to be a long walk."

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**Katniss POV**

I awake to a large 'boom!'. I bolt up on the couch, Peeta sleeping soundly next to me. I shake him. "Peeta!" I whisper. He stirs. I smack his shoulder in frustration. "Pee-ta!" I try again. He wakes with a jump. "What?" he asks. "Did you hear that noise?" He looks at me like I'm insane. "What noise?" *BOOM!*. Peeta jumps. "That noise." I whisper. Peeta jumps up from the couch. "Bombs! We need to get out of here!" he says hurriedly. My stomach flips. I waste no time getting to Mrs. Mellark and Prim. "Get up!" I yell as I grab the bags. It startles them awake. "Bombs, go, go, get out of here!" I scream. They do as I tell them.

We all run out into the streets, panicked. Fires are engulfing buildings, people are running and screaming. It's a disaster. "MAKE FOR THE WOODS!" I shout. Peeta, Prim and Mrs. Mellark follow me to the fence, where we all escape into the forest. I catch a glimpse of everyone else we expected in the meeting spot with the same worried expression on their faces.

"I thought we were prepared!" Aggie exclaims, hugging her bag to her chest. "We were, just not in the way we thought." I insist. Terrin looks especially concerned. "We have to decide now if we are traveling separate, or together." We look around at each other, our makeshift family for the past month. However, it would slow us down if we all traveled in a big group. "Separate." I say. Everyone nods. "We'll meet each other in 13." Reed says. I nod, trying to be optimistic. Peeta and Gale wave goodbye to each other as we go our separate ways for what will be the last time.

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**A/N: PLEASE REVIEW! I will try to update sooner next time.**


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